Alimohamed murder suspect to be tried as adult

In a surprising turn of events Friday, Common Pleas Judge Carolyn Temin reversed her decision which would have allowed Gregory Pennington, 17, to be tried as a juvenile for the murder of fifth-year graduate student Al-Moez Alimohamed. Pennington will now be tried as an adult with Judge James Fitzgerald presiding over the case, according to Mathematics Graduate Chairperson Wolfgang Ziller. Earlier last week, Temin granted a petition of decertification to Pennington, outraging Alimohamed's family and friends. The petition would have allowed Pennington to be tried as a juvenile. Had the petition held, Pennington would have served a maximum sentence of three years in prison if convicted, according to Victim Support and Special Services Director Maureen Rush. Temin said last Wednesday that she would release an official written decision outlining why she chose to decertify Pennington within a day. But on Thursday, she told Assistant District Attorney Roger King that she would need an additional day to review the matter, Ziller said. Temin announced Friday that she had changed her mind and would reverse her previous ruling to decertify Pennington, Ziller added. Earlier this month, Temin found Khaalis Edmonson, 18, guilty of Alimohamed's murder. Edmonson, who was tried as a juvenile, will serve a sentence of three years in prison. Rush said it would have been an injustice had another defendant been tried as a juvenile and "gotten off with such a small penalty." "I'm very happy that Judge Temin thought it over and decided to reverse her decision," Rush said. "Now there will be a more just resolution to the case. The prosecution will not know Temin's official reasoning behind the reversal of her decision until she releases a brief on the subject, Rush said, adding that she suspects the reversal was due to public pressure or "possibly the discovery of new information about the defendant." Jury selection for the trial of Pennington and a fifth defendant, Anthony Archer, will begin Tuesday morning in Fitzgerald's courtroom. The selection process should take about two days, according to Ziller. Both Pennington and Archer will be tried in adult court for life in prison without parole. The actual jury trial could begin as soon as the end of this week, Ziller said. Rush and Ziller both stressed the importance of having the Penn community well-represented in the courtroom. "The prosecution needs the support of Penn students behind them," Rush said. There will be a bus leaving from in front of the David Rittenhouse Laboratory every day at 9 a.m. to bring observers to the courtroom once the jury portion of the trial commences.