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Boy, 11, sent to residence program for beating Philly man

The boy facing Family Court Judge Kevin Dougherty seemed younger than 11, standing quietly beside his lawyer and wearing a too-large sweatshirt that was baggy on his slight frame.

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The boy facing Family Court Judge Kevin Dougherty seemed younger than 11, standing quietly beside his lawyer and wearing a too-large sweatshirt that was baggy on his slight frame.

But the boy's actions in March - ambushing 72-year-old Southwest Philadelphia resident Vincent Poppa with a group of friends, then beating him into unconsciousness as part of a now-notorious "catch-and-wreck" attack - left Dougherty unsympathetic to the child's age. On Friday, Dougherty ordered the boy sent to St. Gabriel's Hall, a residence program in Audubon, Montgomery County, for juvenile delinquents, for an undetermined length of time.

"My heart breaks that you stand before me convicted of a violent crime at 11 years old," Dougherty said. "I fear a new generation of individuals who lack compassion, remorse, or conscience. At 11 years old, a child should know right or wrong."

The boy, whose name is not being made public due to his age, will be given extensive counseling, will attend class, and will be subject to periodic reviews by Dougherty. He could be released in a few years or remain in the state's care until he is 18 or 21, depending on his future behavior.

Dougherty ordered parenting classes for the boy's mother, saying she had shown a lack of involvement in her son's life and had failed to get him the support he needed when he began struggling in school and acting out.

Dougherty also had harsh words for a letter she wrote to the judge after her son's arrest. In it, she argued that her son was innocent and that police manipulated him into confessing to the Poppa attack.

"Instead of defending his conduct, you should be outraged," Dougherty told her Friday. "All that does is show me your ignorance of the severity of this crime. . . . You are either in a state of absolute denial, or you're a bigger threat to this child than I am aware."

The boy's mother, other relatives, and his defense attorney declined to comment after court Friday.

The March 13 attack on Poppa near the Finnegan Playground at 69th Street and Grovers Avenue, which left the retired candy-shop owner hospitalized for more than a month with internal injuries, resulted in four arrests.

The 11-year-old boy has confessed to police and was convicted of aggravated assault and other charges. He gave a detailed statement to police after his March 23 arrest, portions of which Dougherty read from Friday, in which he said he and his friends saw Poppa walking near a 7-Eleven store and a Chinese restaurant, then down a dark walkway toward the senior citizens' apartment complex. First, the group threw sticks at him, then started hitting him, and the boy admitted punching Poppa several times as the others beat and stomped him.

Philadelphia police have said Poppa was the victim of a violent game called "catch-and-wreck" or "catchin' rep," in which adolescents carry out random attacks on people they believe to be homeless.

A week after Poppa's attack, a 41-year-old woman walking near the Finnegan Playground was chased by a group of young people who threw things at her. The same 11-year-old and three girls were later found guilty of harassment in the attack.

Poppa was unable to identify his attackers because it was dark at the time. A 13-year-old saw the beating, but when she recanted her statement on the stand this month, saying she had received death threats, Dougherty had no choice but to find the other three not guilty.

"We will not permit witness intimidation," Dougherty said Friday to the 11-year-old. "If I ever find out any threats came to that child from you, I will come for you."

Dougherty's review of the boy's academic record indicated he was a troubled student. The boy was absent 20 times from school this last year, late 17 times, and suspended "constantly," Dougherty said. Teachers and school psychologists reported behavioral and emotional problems that compounded his learning difficulties, which include trouble reading and focusing on tasks.

The school reports seemed contradictory, sometimes disagreeing with one another as to the boy's academic capabilities. Some observations about his mental state came without recommendations. One report stated the boy's mother was told to seek therapy for her son, which she denied in court Friday.

"I'm somewhat concerned," Dougherty said, "with what the School District actually did."