YORK COUNTY, Pa. — York County District Attorney Dave Sunday announced the Red Lion teen accused of shooting and killing his 12-year-old classmate on April 1 will be charged with third-degree homicide and related charges.
Sunday made the announcement at a press conference Friday morning.
An investigation into the death of 12-year-old Kain Heiland determined he was shot and killed by 13-year-old Nolan Donald Grove while they were out with another friend on the night of Saturday, April 1.
In addition to the third-degree homicide charge, Grove is charged with involuntary manslaughter, carrying a firearm without a license, possession of a firearm by a minor and recklessly endangering another person, according to the criminal complaint affidavit filed by State Police, who investigated the case.
At the press conference, Sunday said there have been no charges filed against Grove's parents at this time.
Heiland's stepfather, Kevin Quickel, said he was not satisfied with the third-degree murder charge. He believes it should have been a first-degree charge, which requires intent to kill.
"He got third-degree murder charges thrown at him and licked his lips, like nothing," Quickel said after Grove's arraignment. "His dad sat there. No sympathy on the kid or his father's face. To me, that's not something that should happen."
Quickel said he wanted the community to remember Heiland as a bright young man.
"He was a great kid. Probably the best kid I ever met," Quickel said. "Loved being there for his brothers, his family. I miss him to death."
The criminal complaint outlined a timeline of the events leading to Heiland's death:
At 8:27 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, State Police received a call reporting that a male child had been found lying on a pathway between two homes on the first block of 1st Avenue in Red Lion. The body was identified as Heiland. An autopsy determined he had died of a single gunshot wound, with an entrance wound to the back at a downward angle.
The investigation determined Heiland spent the afternoon and evening with Grove and another friend, and the three planned to sleep over at the friend's house later that night.
At some point during the day, Grove went to his home and retrieved the firearm used in the shooting, a witness told police. The witness told police he saw Grove "playing" with the handgun several times throughout the day, loading and unloading it and activating the firearm's laser sight.
Surveillance video taken from the friend's home shows that at approximately 6:09 p.m., Grove is pointing the gun at Heiland and a dot from the laser site is seen on Heiland's torso.
At about 7:15 p.m., the group went to Grove's home and later had a conversation with two girls who were in possession of a scooter that the friend believed was his. During the conversation, police claim, Grove told one of the girls he "wasn't afraid to shoot somebody" and that he would if he could, the complaint states.
Another witness later provided a screengrabbed image from a FaceTime call between the witness and Grove to investigators, the complaint states. The image shows Grove again pointing the gun at Heiland, and the laser sight is visible on Heiland's body.
At about 8:22 p.m., Grove, Heiland and the third friend were walking through a neighbor's yard when Grove said "something" about Heiland's mother, though the witness could not recall what was said. Heiland allegedly told Grove to be quiet.
The friend and another witness, who was still on a Facetime call with the group at that point, told police they heard Grove tell Heiland something to the effect of "you know what happens" or "you know what would happen."
At that point, the friend told police, Grove removed the firearm from his sweatshirt and shot Heiland in the back from close range. The person on the Facetime call confirmed hearing the shot, and that the friend yelled something at Grove immediately afterward.
The friend told police he ran home following the shooting, and that Grove followed him. Grove reportedly did not answer when asked by the friend why he had shot Heiland.
Neither boy called 911, according to the complaint. The friend told police Grove later returned to where Heiland was lying to pick up a bb gun Heiland had dropped after the shooting.
According to police, phone records indicate Grove called his father, who was in Harrisburg, shortly after the shooting.
The friend told police he told his parents about what had happened, and the parents contacted authorities.
The friend later told police that Grove had been telling "your mom" jokes to Heiland throughout the day and that Heiland had told him several times to "be quiet" or "shut up," according to the complaint.
The two had no other disagreements throughout the day, the friend told police.
Investigators executed a search warrant at Grove's home and found the handgun believed to have been used in the shooting in a hidden compartment-styled firearms case.
Grove allegedly told police he was in his bedroom the night of the shooting and reported hearing a gunshot. Police noted in the complaint that Grove was wearing different clothes than what he was seen wearing in surveillance video earlier that night, and that he had washed his hands.
Grove's mother allegedly told investigators that her son told her the shooting was an accident, and that the firearm discharged accidentally while he was "walking and swinging his arms" while holding the firearm in his right hand.
A private funeral was held for Heiland last month.