WELLSBURG, W.Va. — The Brooke County prosecutor’s office announced a teenager charged with her father’s death earlier this year will be tried as an adult.
Brooke County prosecutor Joe Barki spoke for the first time Thursday about the case involving Shannon Bartz. The 16-year-old allegedly killed her father Donald Bartz at the family’s home in Wellsburg on May 29.
“This isn’t something that happens every day in this community or any community. It’s a terrible crime. A man lost his life,” Barki told WTOV-TV. “The defendant is a very young person and the charges are substantial and will affect her for the rest of her life should she be convicted of them.”
Barki said he intends to to present the case to a grand jury for a murder indictment. Bartz is being held in a juvenile facility.