MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - He was 14 years old when Memphis police say he murdered another Memphis teen. Donald Rivers is being tried as an adult for the 2009 murder. His fate is now in the hands of a jury.
The jury received the case around 10:30am Thursday, and by 5:30pm they still hadn't reached a verdict.
Rivers was 14 at the time of the murder. If convicted, he'll spend the majority of his life behind bars.
Rivers, now 17, is accused of shooting and killing 18-year-old Reginald Crawford in Binghampton, not far from East High School. Reginald Crawford, Sr., the victim's father, told abc24.com, "He did a grown man crime, he should do the grown man time."
Crawford Sr. doesn't understand why it's taking the jury so long to convict the teen he believes killed his son. "He tried to shoot my baby son first, then turned the gun on my oldest son and shot him in the head."
Rivers took the stand Wednesday in his own defense. He told the jury he was scared, that everything happened so fast he was trying to defend himself. The State and Crawford's family don't see it that way. "Look at his mother," Crawford, Sr., says, "She's in there crying everyday about it, and they act like it's a game, it wasn't a game from day one."
The Crawford's come to court daily holding tight to their son's framed picture, hoping the jury brings them justice.
At one point, Rivers was the youngest inmate in the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center.
If convicted of second degree murder he could face up to 25 years in prison.
