A 17-year-old has been sentenced to 17 years in prison in the fatal shooting of a teen girl last year during a Tucson house party, authorities say.
Juventino Cervantes-Burke was found guilty on three felony counts, manslaughter, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and discharging a firearm within city limits, according to Pima County Superior Court documents.
He was sentenced May 22 by Pima County Superior Court Judge Renee T. Bennett to 17 years in prison.
Cervantes-Burke was arrested in March 2023 after the body of Azucena Reina Price, 16, was found outside a duplex near East Fifth Street and North Country Club Road.
Her body had been dumped into a backyard swimming pool after sheโd been shot in the head during a party, the Star has previously reported.
Two others at the party also faced charges in the case.
Christopher Deangelo Bravo was found guilty last week on one count of tampering with physical evidence. Other charges are pending.
Joshua Galen Wood was arrested on suspicion of concealing a dead body, tampering with evidence, hindering prosecution and two counts of third-degree burglary. His charges are pending.
Wood told police that Cervantes-Burke was playing with a loaded handgun when it fired and shot Price in the head, according to court documents. After the shooting, Cervantes-Burke left the handgun at the residence and fled.
Wood, who said had stepped out when the shot fired, told police he used sheets to move Priceโs body and dump it in the swimming pool. He then burned the sheets. He had also buried the handgun when he called Bravo for help, according to court documents.
Bravo advised Wood to not hide the handgun with the body, after which they hid it in Bravoโs vehicle where it was later found by police, according to court documents.
