Officers have recommended the 15-year-old who violently beat Kaylee Gain outside of their St. Louis high school — leaving her with brain damage, including short-term memory loss — should be tried as a juvenile.
Maurnice DeClue was charged with felony assault after the brutal beatdown near Hazelwood East High School in Spanish Lake, which was recorded with cellphone cameras and later went viral online. The clip sees DeClue getting on top of Gain and repeatedly slamming her head into the concrete on the afternoon of March 8.
On Friday, DeClue appeared in court for a certification hearing, a required step in the legal process when juveniles are charged with more serious offenses.
An officer who reviewed DeClue’s academic records, sat down with her and her family, and examined the arrest report said the teen should remain in the juvenile court system, KSDK reported. She also confirmed Gain threw the first punch, adding that she’d just been suspended the day prior for fighting with a different student.
“There was no malice, she was just defending herself,” DeClue’s mother, Consuella DeClue, said of her daughter.
Her lawyer, Greg Smith, described her as an “outstanding student” who plays the violin, speaks multiple languages and had never been in trouble before the assault.
The judge said he would take the recommendation under advisement, but made no decision on Friday. He did however reject Smith’s request that DeClue be released to her parents and remain on house arrest with a GPS monitor.
Earlier this week, Gain’s family confirmed she’d finally returned home after a month in the hospital and two weeks at a rehabilitation facility. During that time the teen underwent a series of medical procedures, including a craniectomy, which involved removing part of her skull to relieve pressure on the brain. As a result, Gain has to wear a customized helmet until she can undergo surgery to reattach the missing piece.
Gain is also required to attend physical and speech therapy three times a week and experiences short-term memory loss.
Gain and her family did not attend DeClue’s hearing on Friday. Her attorney, Bryan Kaemmerer, in a statement to KSDK said that it “would not be in the best interest of her mental or physical health.”
