BOY CHARGED IN BEATING WILL STAY IN JUVENILE HALL.

Byline: Karyn Hunt Associated Press 

A 6-year-old boy charged with attempted murder in the near-fatal beating of an infant will remain in Juvenile Hall for his own safety, a court referee ruled Friday.

Juvenile referee Stephen Easton denied a defense request to let the boy return home, citing death threats against the youngster.

He also denied requests to drop charges against the boy and the 8-year-old twins who are accused of helping him steal a Big Wheel tricycle.

Prosecutors contend the three boys broke into a Richmond apartment April 22 to steal the tricycle. The 6-year-old boy is accused of beating and kicking a 4-week-old baby while the baby sitter was in another room. The twins were released to their family and are charged only in the burglary.

After the hearing, prosecutor Harold Jewett was nearly shouted down by an angry band of protesters who claimed he was pursuing the case more aggressively because the child accused of the crime is African-American. ``Harold Jewett, you can't hide. We charge you with genocide,'' they yelled.

The kindergartner is the youngest child in the nation ever charged with attempted murder.

His lawyer, John Burris, argued that the boy is too young to understand the consequences of his actions and that the case should be handled by social workers, not the criminal courts.

The boy's mother was upset by the referee's ruling.

``I feel kind of angry. It's unfair,'' she said. ``There's this talk that I'm an unfit mother. I'm a fit mother. I'm a hard-working mother. They're saying it was a lack of responsibility on my part. Well, he was very well cared for by his family and friends.''

During the hearing the boy doodled on a yellow legal pad, tugged on his lawyer's jacket and at one point, asked the courtroom sketch artist: ``Are you drawing me?''

He hugged his mother and grandfather at the end of the hearing and when he heard the referee mention ``home,'' said: ``I want to go home.''

Outside the courtroom, Burris was asked what the child had said about the alleged attack on the infant. ``He retreats into another land whenever the subject is broached,'' the lawyer said.

As protesters taunted him outside the court, Jewett said he decided to pursue criminal charges because of the seriousness of the crime.

``There is an important element of social responsibility here that the court needs to address,'' said Jewett, who is white. ``It's appropriate for the court and society to take note of what this child did.''

Attorneys for both sides said the boy is being well cared for in Juvenile Hall. Doctors have said the infant will probably suffer permanent brain damage from the beating.