15-year-old sentenced to 8 years in juvenile justice for Wichita teen’s death

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – A teenage boy who pleaded guilty to shooting another teen was sentenced to the maximum sentence in the juvenile court system.

Talon Rico, 15, was charged with second-degree murder in the Feb. 2 death of 17-year-old Julio Ruiz.

District Judge Patrick Walters on Thursday sentenced Rico to juvenile corrections until he is 22.5 years old with post-supervision until he is 23. Rico is now 15 years old.

Ruiz was shot on February 2 in the 100 block of N. Zelta in east Wichita. He was one of five guys who talked about putting a bullet in the ground.

READ MORE: 14-year-old arrested, teen dead in shooting in E. Wichita

According to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office, Ruiz carried a 9mm handgun in a holster in his waistband, while Rico, who was 14 at the time, had a gun in the front pocket of his hoodie.

Ruiz fired one shot into the ground, followed by Rico who fired three or four times. Witnesses said that as Rico fired his gun, “it flew toward Ruiz and bullets struck Ruiz,” according to the district attorney’s office.

Ruiz ran a short distance before collapsing and dying.

The district attorney’s office said Rico’s gun was tested at the Wichita/Sedgwick County Law Enforcement Firearms Range, where it fired like a normal handgun and “there was nothing that would have caused it to recoil.”

Copyright 2024 KWCH. All rights reserved. To report a correction or typo, please email [email protected]