Boy, 10, Charged as Adult With Homicide

A 10-year-old boy in Pennsylvania was charged with homicide Monday in the death of a 90-year-old woman. Police say Tristen Kurilla, 10, repeatedly punched Helen Novak, 90, until she died. Kurilla will be charged as an adult and is locked in Wayne County Correctional Facility without bail. On Saturday, Kurilla visited his grandfather, who was a caretaker for Novak. Kurilla “went into Novak’s room and asked her a question and then she yelled for him to get out,” according to Kurilla’s mother’s statement in the affidavit. She said her son “got mad and lost his temper” and put a cane around Novak’s throat. He then proceeded to “pull Novak down on the bed and held the cane on her throat. He then punched her repeatedly.” After an autopsy was performed on Novak, her death was ruled a homicide.