3rd teen has first hearing in Portage woman’s death
16-year-old defendant from Gary enters not guilty plea in November shooting
The youngest of three Gary teens charged in the November death of a Portage woman appeared in court Tuesday, where a judge entered preliminary pleas of not guilty on three felony counts and he was granted a public defender.
Roderick Silas, now 16 and 15 at the time of Adriana Saucedo’s shooting death, appeared before Porter Circuit Court Judge Mary DeBoer and confirmed he does not have the financial resources to hire his own attorney.
Saucedo, 27, was shot to death Nov. 19 in a parking lot blocks from her home in the 6200 block of Kathryn Court. According to court records, she discussed purchasing an iPhone from Silas on Facebook before the conversation turned to a marijuana buy.
Silas and two co-defendants, Jonathan Brown, 18, and Shaun Thompson, 17, allegedly robbed Saucedo before she was shot and dumped her body at an abandoned elementary school in Gary.
Robert Harper will serve as Silas’ public defender; his son Harold Harper represented Silas, who was waived to adult court on Sept. 30, in juvenile court.
Silas confirmed that he was a freshman in high school at the time of his arrest and did not have the funds to pay for his legal defense.
He is charged with felony counts of aiding, inducing or causing a murder; murder in the perpetration of a robbery; and robbery resulting in serious bodily injury.
Silas also faces a sentencing enhancement for the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
The two murder charges carry sentences of 45 to 65 years in prison and the sentence for the armed robbery charge is 10 to 30 years. The firearm enhancement would increase the sentence for each charge, if Silas is found guilty, by five to 20 years.
Harold Harper said during the waiver hearing that there is a provision for a plea agreement on Silas’ behalf, though he declined to provide details. Silas did not object to the waiver and his attorney said during the hearing that the defense acknowledged that the state had sufficient evidence for the waiver.
Silas has been housed at the Porter County Juvenile Detention Center since November. Officials have agreed to allow him to remain there.
Brown and Thompson, who were 17 and 16, respectively, at the time of the alleged crimes, were charged with murder, murder in the perpetration of a robbery and felony robbery, i n Saucedo’s death. Their cases were filed directly in adult court; both have pleaded not guilty and are being held without bond at Porter County Jail.
Prosecutors are seeking a sentencing enhancement for use of a firearm during the crime for both of them if they are convicted.
Brown’s attorney has said in court that he and prosecutors are working “on a non-trial resolution” in his case. Brown’s next hearing is Nov. 17 before DeBoer.