LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A girl has been judged competent to stand trial in the stabbing attack of another student at Lincoln Pius X High School.
Judge Steven Burns made the ruling on Wednesday in Lancaster County District Court in Lincoln after reviewing a letter from a psychiatrist. Burns didn’t release the letter for public view. Prosecutors had sought the evaluation.
Lincoln police say the girl attacked 17-year-old Ellen Kopetzky at the school on Oct. 7, using a knife and hammer. The girl was arrested the next day in Yates Center, Kansas.
The judge has already rejected a defense request to have the case moved to juvenile court. The girl is 17 now and has pleaded not guilty to felony assault and weapons charges.
The Associated Press generally doesn’t identify juveniles accused of crimes.