‘RUSH TO JUDGMENT’

Teen Charged in Tessa Majors’ Slaying Was Questioned by Cops Without Attorney: Counsel

“We must ensure that our client’s constitutional rights are not violated,” the Legal Aid Society said in a statement.

The 13-year-old accused of killing 18-year-old Barnard College student Tessa Majors was interrogated by police without an attorney present, the minor's counsel—the Legal Aid Society—said in a statement Tuesday. The organization warned against a “rush to judgment” in the case. “No one should seek to exploit this tragedy to press for new, ill-advised criminal sanctions against our young clients. Our client is a 13-year-old child who is presumed innocent with no juvenile record,” the statement read. “We are absolutely troubled by the fact that our client was questioned and interrogated by police without an attorney present. We must ensure that our client’s constitutional rights are not violated.” Hannah Kaplan, a public defender representing the boy, suggested during a hearing in Family Court on Tuesday that a detective may have badgered him during questioning. Majors was repeatedly stabbed in Manhattan's Morningside Park last week after a group tried to rob her. The 13-year-old, who has told investigators it was one of his friends who stabbed Majors, was charged with second-degree murder and other crimes as a juvenile, and police are still trying to identify the other attackers.

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Julia ArcigaReporter

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