Updated Oct. 8, 10:30 p.m.
A foster child was arraigned in court today on first-degree murder, among other charges, in the death of his foster father.
Peter John Henry is 16 years old, but “due given the nature of the charges,” the judge at the arraignment said he would be charged as an adult.
The assigned district attorney for the state says he was present when Henry described the act of killing his foster parent, 64-year-old Marvell Johnson, host of “Soul to Soul,” a music show on a public radio station.
“He had just a stone cold demeanor when he described how easy it was for him to kill Marvell [Johnson],” said the state attorney. “I believe that Mr. Peter Henry presents the most serious of dangers to our community.”
Henry was taken into custody Tuesday after authorities responded to a report that a foster child shot and killed his foster father in East Anchorage.
Charging documents indicate Henry was upset with Johnson for going through his room and taking away his vapor cigarette charger.
Henry is also charged with coercion, after police say he threatened to kill another teenager in the house if he told anyone about the murder. State prosecutors indicate that the teen was another foster child being cared for by Johnson.
Charging documents say Henry told the foster sibling to put the gun in a creek and destroy the home’s surveillance system.
Christy Lawton, director of the state’s Office of Children’s Services, says her staff is looking at reaching out to current foster parents to reassure them.
“Encouraging them to call if they have had any concerns or issues with kids or youth in their home,” said Lawton. “Those are things they are required to report to us if there were concerns.”
Henry’s foster sibling told police that Henry was recently grounded for using the synthetic drug known as spice. OCS can’t confirm if Henry had a violent past, but court records show he had minor run-ins with the law in Kotzebue.
Karen Forrest, director of the state’s Division of Juvenile Justice, says even though this is the second murder of a foster parent within three months, cases like these don’t happen often.
“There has not been an incident of a shooting or serious event like this with a foster parent for many, many years,” said Forrest. “We will be reviewing the situations and see what we can learn from what has occurred going forward.”
OCS says it will also review the shooting, along with policies and procedures, to see what can be learned.
Henry’s bail was set at $500,000 cash performance plus a third-party custodian. The teen is also not allowed any contact with two students at Bartlett High School who have spoken to police regarding the incident.
Henry is scheduled for a pre-indctment hearing tomorrow, Oct. 9, at the Nesbett Courthouse, where he is expected to enter a plea.