ALBANY COUNTY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -Watervliet police officers responded to 13th Street and Second Avenue on Thursday following reports of a large fight. They found two minors. One had stab wounds to her neck and arm.

Chief William Rice said the girl is lucky to be alive. “When you bring a weapon to a fight and then use that, we’re gonna charge you.”

NEWS10’s Anthony Krolikowski was shown pictures of the knife that was allegedly used with a 3 1/2-inch blade along with pictures of the stab wounds and a video of the fight. The rest was not given to him to show in this report due to minors being involved. The 14-year-old accused of stabbing the other girl is facing three charges including attempted murder.

But Chief Rice said these types of cases don’t always result in justice. “Her mother told the detectives when he issued the appearance ticket for family court, ‘I don’t know why you’re doing this. Nothing’s going to happen to my daughter.’ So the word is out there. People know that nothing is probably going to happen.”

Krolikowski spoke with Albany District Attorney Lee Kindlon about cases like this and how minors are treated in court. Kindlon’s response was that Raise the Age is incomplete and needs more work to hold minors accountable and put them on a path to success.

“A judge has to make the determination whether or not that case stays in the criminal justice system or its diverted down to family court where as everybody now knows at this point, the punishments are much less severe. Community monitoring and rehabilitation and all these things that come as part of punishment and rehabilitation… Those resources, that money, hasn’t been allocated. It hasn’t been spent.”

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