Tried as an adult

District Attorney Mike Ramsey announced that an Oroville teenager accused of the brutal killing of a 62-year-old man is being tried as an adult.

Juan Ortega Morales III (pictured) was 17 years old when he allegedly pummeled and stomped on Howard Brimm this past summer. Surveillance cameras, according to a press release from the DA’s office, show Brimm crossing the street to avoid the approaching Morales and then the teenager “hitting him, knocking him down” and “stomping on Brimm’s head as he was prone on the street.” He died of head injuries 38 days later.

Based on now-18-year-old Morales’ prior criminal record and the severity of the crime, a juvenile court judge determined that he was “unfit” to be tried as a juvenile. He was arraigned last Wednesday (Dec. 13) on a charge of murder.