Delinquent: Efrain didnt fire the gun, but was charged with attempted murder, bound over. Should he have been prosecuted as an adult? [Video]

CLEVELAND, Ohio – A few months shy of his 19th birthday, Efrain struggled to wrap his head around how he ended up in an adult prison cell, where he’s now serving three years on attempted murder charges committed as a juvenile.

He traces his devolution to a single day in December 2020, his freshman year in high school. He was rushing to finish homework before Christmas break when his best friend called wanting to play video games. Efrain brushed him off.

The friend would end up tagging along with other teens to an arranged drug deal on Cleveland’s West side. There was a fight over the drugs and the teens peeled away as bullets chased them. One round ripped through the back windshield, striking Efrain’s friend in the head, killing him. The boy was 13.

Efrain blamed himself, thinking his friend might still be alive if he hadn’t prioritized homework …