A 15-year-old teen referred to as the "most culpable" in the Father's Day beating that led to Gardnerville resident Terrence "Joe" Howell's death faces up to 10 years in prison at sentencing this morning.
Alexandrew Vail admitted to kicking Howell in the side while the man was down on all fours during an altercation prompted by an argument between two girls.
The other three defendants in the case were sentenced Nov. 3, but Vail's sentencing was delayed while defense attorney Tod Young crafted a sentence that would protect his young client from prison and be satisfactory to the prosecution.
Prosecutor Tom Gregory said Nov. 3 that he believed that Vail should be sentenced to 4-10 years in prison to protect the community.
According to reports, Howell was kicked, punched and shoved in a brief altercation with the four men. Witnesses said he walked home after the fight and showed no outward signs of trauma to deputies or medical center personnel.
The next morning, June 22, his daughter found Howell in the bathroom with labored breathing. He was taken to Carson-Tahoe Regional Medical Center where he died after surgery to remove his spleen. An autopsy revealed Howell bled to death when his ribs punctured his spleen.
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