Episode #2198- Hammer and Nigel Full Show

**SPEAKER_1** (0:01)
Do you believe these characters?

**SPEAKER_2** (0:02)
They're weirdos.

**Nigel** (0:05)
And so Hammer, Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears filed a petition to move the murder case of the 14-year-old charged with Brett Scroggum's death from juvenile court to adult court, which is procedure. He can't just arbitrarily say, all right, we're charging this kid as an adult, right?
I mean, correct. It's it's something that he's got to there's a procedure.

**Hammer** (0:28)
So the way this has to work per the law in the state of Indiana is that because the shooter is 14 years old, it will start in a juvenile court. But because a petition now has been filed from the prosecutor's office, it is now up to the judge's discretion whether or not to move forward with charging this young man as an adult.
Here is Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears.

**Ryan Mears** (0:55)
Because the individual involved in this case is 14 years of age, this case has to be filed into juvenile court, meaning that the beginning of this process will begin in juvenile court. In addition to the charges that we have filed, we've also filed a petition to waive this case to adult court, meaning that a Marion County court judge will ultimately make the determination, the decision as to whether or not this individual should be tried as a juvenile in juvenile court, or as an adult in adult court.

**Hammer** (1:24)
So really, the prosecutor here kicks the can down the road and puts it all on to the judge.
So now if you're somebody that feels like at 14, you know exactly what you're doing. You know the difference between right and wrong. It comes down to whether or not you've got a sympathetic judge, or perhaps it comes down to the prosecutors or the defense team presenting their sides of the argument. Let's sway the judge.

**Nigel** (1:52)
Well, you let a jury decide that, okay? The judge needs to move it to adult court and then it can go to trial. And I don't know, I care how many political talking pundits and heads will say, well, a sympathetic jury.
This person is going to serve time, okay? Let's not get it twisted. This 14 year old is going to serve a lot of time. Whether or not he gets out of jail at 40 or 50, that remains the question at this point, I think.

**Hammer** (2:21)
And is that what Brett Sgrogram's family views as justice? Is this 14 year old, and I say kid, this kid getting out at age 40 or 50, is that justice to Brett's family? I don't know the answer to that. I would have a hard time feeling like if this were my family, that would be justice. If this were my family, I would never want him as a free man ever again. As long as he's breathing, I want him behind closed doors.
I would want the death penalty, but that's not going to happen here.
The 14 year old was charged with murder, felony murder, attempted armed robbery, possession of a firearm. Now we still don't know where this kid got the firearm. This was, from all reports, sounds like it was a cardjacking slash robbery gone bad. And the probable cause will not be released until this becomes an adult case. And that's not a guarantee. So if this stays as a juvenile case, we will never see the probable cause, Nigel. And I hate that.
But if you wanted to find out the real feelings of your prosecutor, Ryan Mears, he went on in that press conference today and he was almost doing a victory lap because the 14-year-old does not have a criminal record, had never been arrested before, had never been charged before. It was weird, but Mears was like proud of the fact that it wasn't a repeat offender. And then he went on to blame the guns for the situation.

**Ryan Mears** (4:03)
We have a 14-year-old who has never been charged, who has never been arrested.
He was currently seeking, they're currently being charged with murder. That is not a reflection of anything other than this individual's choices. And the fact that it is way too easy for people in this community who are young to have access to firearms. And when we have a conversation about the problems that this case presents, we need to be serious and honest about what the problem is. And the problem is that too many kids have access to guns in our community.

**Hammer** (4:34)
So, here comes the gun argument again.

**Nigel** (4:37)
Wow.

**Hammer** (4:38)
It's not the fact that there's a lot of juvenile violence or there are very few responsible fathers, it seems like, involved in all these cases. The fact that it's predominantly the black community.