Teen pleads guilty to attempted murder

A 16-year-old boy was given a chance to avoid prison while pleading guilty to two counts of attempted first-degree murder and being given a blended sentence of six to 25 years in custody.

Triston M. Arnzen, of Lewiston, was sentenced by 2nd District Judge Michelle Evans on Monday at the Nez Perce County Courthouse. In what is called a blended sentence, he will serve time at the Nez Perce County Juvenile Detention Center until he turns 21. At that time, Evans can then send Arnzen to an adult rider program to continue treatment, send him to prison to serve his sentence or release him on probation.

He was sentenced to serve a minimum of three years for each charge and a maximum of 15 years in prison for one charge and a maximum of 10 years for the other charge. The sentences will run consecutively, which means Arnzen will serve a total of six to 25 years. Arnzen was also given 609 days credit toward his sentencing.

Arnzen was charged after the shooting of George Hamblin Jr., who is his stepfather, and Macayla Hamblin, his stepsister, on Feb. 27, 2022, in the 600 block of Bryden Drive.

A no-contact order was put in place for 25 years for both victims. Arnzen will also pay $245.50 in fees to the court and a $5,000 civil penalty to each victim.

He was 14 years old at the time of the shooting.

Another 14-year-old was involved, Chloe Marks, who was charged with attempted first-degree murder for taking part in the shooting of George Hamblin. She pleaded guilty in December and was also given a blended sentence in March to serve four to 15 years starting in juvenile correction.

Both teenagers were charged as adults. Both Arnzen and Marks will pay restitution to George Hamblin and Arnzen will also pay restitution to Macayla Hamblin. The amount will be determined at a later time.

Arnzen pleaded guilty to the charges in August and his charge has been in mediation with his public defender, Lawrence Moran. The sentencing was part of a rule 11 agreement, which is binding by the court. If a judge doesn’t follow the rule 11 agreement, the defendant can revoke their guilty plea. In this agreement the decision on where Arnzen would serve his sentence could be determined by the judge, with Moran arguing for juvenile correction and Chief Deputy Prosecutor April Smith arguing for Evans to impose a prison sentence.

Smith said that the main reason the state was asking for a prison sentence was for community safety and protection of the public. She noted that the presentencing investigation report also recommended a prison sentence.

Both George Hamblin and Macayla Hamblin were in court with about 20 other people. The two wrote victim impact statements that were read by Evans, but not read in court.

Smith said that George Hamblin and Macayla Hamblin continue to deal with medical issues as well as emotional trauma from the shooting. Smith highlighted a statement from George Hamblin in his victim impact statement that he never imagined he would experience this level of physical or emotional trauma in his life.

Smith also noted that the plan to shoot George Hamblin was thought of and planned by Arnzen, with Marks’ involvement.

“He was the mastermind behind this crime,” Smith said.

That fact meant that he deserved a different sentence than Marks, Smith argued.

Smith went over some of the events of the shooting including that Arnzen shot George Hamblin, as he was bleeding from his neck in the kitchen, and then began firing on Macayla Hamblin, who was 11 years old at the time.

“So there is this 11-year-old running away from her brother who is shooting at her while she is running away,” Smith said.

Smith said the shooting took place because George Hamblin wouldn’t let him go to the park. But Moran argued that there were other factors taking place in the home that led to the shooting.

“That’s no excuse for what happened, but what we can see is an explanation of how we got to where we are today,” Moran said.

Smith also cited statements from Arnzen during police interviews after the shooting where he said he didn’t regret his actions and only regretted not getting “confirmed kills” of George Hamblin and Macayla Hamblin.

“This is not someone who should be in the community,” Smith said. “This is not someone who should have the opportunity to be in this situation again.”

Moran said those comments were from Arnzen’s feelings at the time, which have since changed.

“What do we expect from a 14-year-old in the moment?” Moran said.

Even though Arnzen is young, “the events of this day were so shocking and so cold,” Smith said, and that the actions of Arnzen leave the court with only one option of imposing a prison sentence.

Moran argued that letting Arnzen remain in custody at juvenile correction would help him continue to get services and treatment that he has been receiving. He asked for a blended sentence, which would allow for prison time if the court decided it was needed.

Moran said that Arnzen is not the same person he was at the time of the shooting and he has “flourished” in his time at juvenile corrections, “which is candidly a bit sad.” Evans agreed with Moran that Arnzen has improved while in juvenile corrections, both academically and emotionally.

Evans also gave an opportunity for Arnzen to speak in court. He said that he didn’t mean the things he said to the police officers after the shooting and he was scared when he said them.

“I acknowledge I made a mistake, a very horrible mistake,” he said. But he said he has been learning from his mistake and learning “to be a better friend, listener and son.”

He apologized to George Hamblin and Macayla Hamblin and their families, his own family as well as the family of Marks because his actions caused her to be removed from her family.

“I’m very sorry and I regret what I did,” he said.

Evans addressed Arnzen and noted the letters of support she received from his family. She also noted that he had a hard childhood and scored a 10 out of 10 on risk factors from having adverse childhood experiences. She also said he had mental health, anger and self-harm issues.

However, Evans said those were factors, not excuses.

“You certainly did plan this,” Evans said to Arnzen. “It wasn’t a well-thought-out plan, but it was thought out nonetheless.”

Although Arnzen regretted what he said about the shooting to police, Evans said those words were significant as well as his actions of chasing and shooting his sister.

“That’s a hard image to get out of a person’s mind,” she said.

Evans went over the sentencing guidelines with Arnzen and explained to him the different scenarios that could play out with his sentence before issuing the blended sentence and that she will be receiving monthly reports on his behavior. He stated that he understood.

Evans told Arnzen that his actions affected not only his life but the lives of many others. She acknowledged that he was remorseful and showed growth while in custody at the juvenile correction center. She also cited his young age at the time of the shooting and at the sentencing with a long life ahead of him.

“One of the things that impacts me the most is that you were 14½ when you committed this crime,” Evans said. “If you were 25 it would be a different story. But you were 14. You have shown change. You have shown growth. You have shown maturity. You still have a ways to go.”

Brewster may be contacted at kbrewster@lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2297.