A Nevada judge has ruled that a 15-year-old boy will face trial as an adult for a sexual assault incident that took place last year during a school trip. The decision was made on Thursday.
This marks the second case involving an Alexander Dawson School student being tried as an adult, both accused of sharing footage of the alleged rape that happened in Costa Rica. According to Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson, the local authorities are unable to prosecute the teens for the assault itself due to jurisdictional constraints, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Stacy Kollins stated that the teenager, along with at least three others, participated in what she described as a “gang rape” of the male victim. Kollins further claimed that the teen exacerbated the victim’s distress by showing the video of the assault to another student in the victim’s presence.
Prosecutors allege that both the teen and another 15-year-old, who is also being tried as an adult, threatened the victim with harm should he disclose the rape.
The charges against the teen include possessing child sexual abuse material and child abuse. KLAS reports that Kollins revealed the teen had stored images of the assault on a Snapchat account, which he then shared with other students.
The other 15-year-old implicated in the case has been charged with possession of a visual depiction involving the sexual conduct of a child. His charges as an adult were filed back in January.
The other two boys who allegedly carried out last year’s rape are not facing any criminal charges.
[Feature Photo: Pixabay]
