The Police Fatally Shot a Young Girl. Two Teenagers Are Charged With Murder.

It began, prosecutors say, erstwhile 2 teenage boys, carrying a grudge betwixt them and the guns to settee it, exchanged gunfire extracurricular a precocious schoolhouse shot stadium conscionable arsenic a crippled was winding down successful the suburbs of Philadelphia.

It ended with the decease of an 8-year-old miss named Fanta Bility — killed not by the 2 boys, but by a barrage of bullets unleashed by 3 constabulary officers connected the scene, who began firing toward a car they mistakenly believed was the root of the gunshots.

Now, much than 2 months aft the fatal constabulary shooting that shook the tiny municipality of Sharon Hill, criminal charges person been brought successful the lawsuit — but not against the 3 officers. The 2 teenage boys person been charged with first-degree execution for mounting successful question the events that led to the decease of the girl, a girl of West African immigrants who was attending the crippled to ticker her sister, a cheerleader, and her cousin, 1 of the shot players.

The determination by prosecutors to complaint the 2 teenagers, adjacent though they did not occurrence the changeable that killed the girl, portion allowing the constabulary officers progressive to support their jobs, has stirred outrage successful the assemblage and angered her household who interest that the constabulary volition yet evade accountability.

The charges trust connected a ineligible mentation known arsenic “transferred intent,” which prosecutors judge applies successful this lawsuit due to the fact that they accidental the 2 teenagers had intended to termination each other, and the effect of their actions was Fanta’s death. But experts accidental prosecutors are stretching the explanation of “transferred intent” and could person trouble making the charges basal up successful court.

Prosecutors accidental that the constabulary relation successful Fanta’s decease is inactive nether probe and that a expansive assemblage volition statesman reviewing the lawsuit connected Nov. 18 “so that it whitethorn beryllium determined whether the constabulary officers’ usage of deadly unit was justified,” District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer of Delaware County said successful a statement.

“I inquire for the community’s continued patience arsenic the expansive assemblage undertakes its investigation,” helium said.

Philip M. Stinson, a prof of transgression justness astatine Bowling Green State University who studies constabulary violence, said, “It sounds similar a batch of fume and mirrors to deflect from constabulary accountability.” He added, “It makes nary consciousness to sprout into a moving vehicle.”

Bruce L. Castor Jr., the lawyer for the Bility family, who has filed a suit connected its behalf against the metropolis of Sharon Hill and its constabulary department, said the girl’s parents were angered to spot the charges against the teenagers. He said the household believed that the charges were a fume surface designed to shield the constabulary from ineligible consequences for sidesplitting Fanta. (The family, done Mr. Castor, declined to comment.)

Mr. Castor, a erstwhile acting lawyer wide of Pennsylvania who was 1 of erstwhile President Donald J. Trump’s defence lawyers during his 2nd impeachment trial, said helium believed that a condemnation of the 2 teenagers would beryllium hard astatine trial.

“I’m amazed that the territory lawyer was that assertive but I surely privation him well,” Mr. Castor said. “I don’t instantly spot however the doctrine of transferred intent applies nether these circumstances.”

The shootings began connected the evening of Aug. 27 conscionable arsenic the past minutes were ticking disconnected the timepiece of the season-opening shot crippled astatine Academy Park High School. Spectators were already streaming for the exits. On the radio, the announcer was giving the last people — a 42-0 triumph for the location squad — erstwhile bursts of gunfire could beryllium heard. On the field, players deed the crushed seeking safety.

Prosecutors accidental a quality had erupted during the crippled betwixt the 2 boys — 1 16, the different 18 — and their radical of friends. They accidental 1 of them flashed a weapon nestled successful his waistband arsenic helium near the crippled and aboriginal pulled it retired and began shooting toward the different radical of teenagers. The different boy, having tally to his car to retrieve a 9-millimeter Taurus pistol, returned occurrence and wounded a bystander, a witnesser told investigators.

A radical of constabulary officers, astir 140 feet away, fired 25 shots successful return, sidesplitting Fanta and wounding 3 different people, including an older sister.

The gunfight betwixt the 2 teenagers, Mr. Stollsteimer said successful the statement, “precipitated the responsive discharge of weapons by constabulary officers stationed adjacent the entranceway to the shot stadium.”

The case, experts say, reflects 1 of the less-discussed ways that the instrumentality tin shield the constabulary from accountability — erstwhile officers termination idiosyncratic but execution charges are brought against others who were connected the country and whitethorn person participated successful abstracted transgression acts that instigated the constabulary response.

“The main contented present is that the constabulary were negligent and breached their work by showing up and shooting into a crowd,” said Dan Kozieja, of Delco Resists, a section societal justness enactment formed past twelvemonth successful the aftermath of the constabulary execution of George Floyd. “Now they are trying to instrumentality the casual way retired by pinning this execution connected 2 young boys alternatively than taking accountability for their actions.”

BuzzFeed News, successful an probe published successful August, reported connected respective akin cases astir the country. Often successful these cases, prosecutors invoked the alleged felony execution rule, which successful immoderate states allows for execution charges against idiosyncratic who committed a felony that resulted successful death, adjacent if the idiosyncratic had nary intent of sidesplitting someone.

In 1 case, successful 2019 successful Phoenix, constabulary officers pulled implicit a car due to the fact that they suspected the 4 occupants of committing a robbery. When 1 of them fled, the constabulary changeable him dead. The 3 others were charged with murder, portion the constabulary were not held accountable.

As the ineligible process plays out, State Senator Anthony H. Williams, whose territory includes Sharon Hill, has asked for calm.

Mr. Williams said helium felt “blindsided” and “betrayed” erstwhile the charges were announced, since helium said helium had been successful discussions astir the lawsuit with the territory attorney’s office.

“They were not the individuals who changeable the small girl,” helium said. “How successful God’s sanction you tin spell from not charging individuals who were progressive to charging individuals who were not progressive is an exclamation constituent for the strategy to beryllium changed. Not reformed, but to beryllium dramatically changed. It’s mind-boggling.”