Fla. teen convicted in middle school beating case

Fla. teen convicted in middle school beating case

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A jury today convicted a teenager of attempted murder in a vicious kicking and stomping attack on a girl outside a middle school in 2010, rejecting his claims of insanity.

The jury deliberated just over four hours before returning the guilty verdict in the trial of 17-year-old Wayne Treacy in the attack on then-15-year-old Josie Lou Ratley. Treacy could get up to 50 years in prison for the conviction of attempted first-degree murder with a deadly weapon — the steel-toed boots he used to nearly crush the girl’s skull.

The crux of the case was whether jurors would buy Treacy’s defense that he was not responsible because he suffered from severe post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from his brother’s suicide a few months earlier. The attack happened after Ratley enraged Treacy by sending him a taunting text message about his dead brother.

Experts agreed Treacy had PTSD. But prosecution psychiatrists testified that Treacy clearly knew right from wrong and understood the consequences of his actions.

Circuit Judge David Haimes set a status hearing for Aug. 29, at which he said a sentencing date would be scheduled.