In re Tyvonne

Eight-year-old Tyvonne (defendant) found a pistol on his school playground, hid it, brought it to school the next day, bragged to classmates about having it, and then shot and injured a classmate to prove the gun was real before fleeing the scene; the state charged him with five juvenile offenses, and he was convicted of second-degree assault and committed to youth services for up to four years. Tyvonne appealed, arguing he should have been permitted to raise the common-law infancy defense in his juvenile proceeding.