A nine-year-old boy is charged with open murder for allegedly shooting his adoptive mother at their home near Sturgis. Investigators say the boy, who came from a troubled home and had a history of mental issues, shot 63 year-old Pauline Randol with a rifle. She was found dead early Monday at their home in Fawn River Township near Sturgis. Randol’s daughter, Harley Martin, says her brother needs treatment, not jail.
“He doesn’t understand what’s going on right now at all,” she says. Martin adds her brother asked where mom was during his arraignment on Wednesday. Due to his age, the boy’s name is not being released. Martin says his mental health struggles are believed to be due to the use of meth by his biological mother while she was pregnant. St. Joseph County officials are not saying much about the case.
