A mom and aunt intertwined in 15-year-old Kayla Rincon-Miller’s shooting death sat in court Monday morning, despite a no-contact order applied to the co-defendants in the related case, as the two teenagers indicted for first-degree murder did not appear for their arraignments.
Thomas Stein, 16, and Christopher Horne Jr., 16, face one count of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted robbery with a firearm. They are not eligible for the death penalty because they are underage. State Attorney Amira Fox announced their grand jury indictments Wednesday.
Stein and the younger Horne submitted written not guilty pleas since their Wednesday indictments, Lee Circuit Judge Frank Porter said, which excused them from court Monday morning.
The order prevents Stein; Horne Jr.; his father, Christopher Horne Sr.; his mother, Shanice Stewart; and his aunt, Varaka Stewart, from contacting each other or congregating at the same place. It remains unclear if the relatives would face additional charges for sitting together in court.