12-Year-Old Denies Charge of Murdering 8-Year-Old Sister
Isaiah Fowler, 12, is charged with the second-degree murder of his younger sister, Leila. He has denied murdering his sister and his lawyer say he plans a thorough defense for his client.
"Our view of the case hasn't changed," Mark Reichel, Isaiah's attorney, told Reuters. "We got in believing our client was innocent, and as we stand here, that's what we believe. We're concerned about whether or not a 12-year-old can actively participate in his own defense."
"We have no reason to have any doubts about our client's innocence," attorney Steve Plesser added. He, along with Reichel, is representing Isaiah.
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Isaiah is accused of stabbing 8-year-old Leila to death while the two were home alone. He claimed at the time that an intruder had entered the home, killed Leila, then ran off, sparking a massive manhunt for the supposed murderer. After two weeks, police announced that they were calling off the manhunt and had arrested Isaiah.
Krystal Fowler, Isaiah's future stepmother, was the one who found Leila's body when she returned home.
"My children are at home alone and a man just ran out of my house. My older son was in the bathroom, and my daughter started screaming. When he came out, there was a man outside my house. I need an officer there," Krystal told the 911 operator.
Leila had been stabbed 21 times and "died of shock and bleeding as a result of multiple stab wounds," an autopsy determined.
"I'm not saying goodbye to Leila," Isaiah said at a vigil for his sister. "I'm saying, 'See you later.' There are no goodbyes."
Isaiah was arrested one week later, and his family has said that they will support him throughout the trial.
"Until they have proper evidence to show it's my son, we're standing behind him," Barney Fowler told Salem-News. "If they have the evidence, well that's another story. We're an honest family."
"There is no way Isaiah would hurt his sister," his biological mother, Priscilla Rodriguez, told CBS Sacramento.
Isaiah will be back in court on July 31 to schedule a trial; until then, he remains in the custody of a juvenile detention facility.
