Judge orders Brown moved to Onondaga County Justice Center after turning 18
Brown was moved from Hillbrook to the Justice Center after turning 18, changing where he is held while the murder case moves toward a June 2 hearing and a Dec. 7 trial.
A judge has ordered Torrin Brown out of Hillbrook Juvenile Detention Center and into the Onondaga County Justice Center now that he has turned 18, a move that changes the teenager’s custody status while he waits for trial in the killing of 15-year-old Deron McGee Jr.
Judge Matthew Doran granted the transfer motion Thursday, shifting Brown from a juvenile facility to the county’s maximum-security jail in Syracuse. Brown, Uzziah Murray and Quinntone Moore were all 16 when the Aug. 12, 2024 shooting happened, but all three are being tried as adults. Brown’s next court appearance is set for June 2, and the three defendants are scheduled for trial on Dec. 7.
The practical effect of the ruling is clear: Hillbrook is a short-term facility for youth until their cases reach final disposition, while the Justice Center is built to house arrested and pre-trial incarcerated people awaiting transfer. Onondaga County began housing all 16- and 17-year-olds charged with felony offenses at Hillbrook on Oct. 1, 2018, under New York’s Raise the Age law. Once Brown crossed into adulthood, the court moved him to the adult detention setting that matches his legal status.
Prosecutors say the teens were friends riding in a stolen Hyundai Sonata when one of them fired during a drive-by shooting on Westmoreland Avenue in Syracuse. Court paperwork described McGee Jr. as an unintended target. Syracuse police said the vehicle fired handguns at people outside the Parkside Commons Apartment Complex. McGee Jr. was taken to Upstate University Hospital and later died.
The case carries added weight in Syracuse because McGee Jr. was the son of Deron L. McGee, 39, who was shot and killed April 8 at Webster and Warner avenues. A 10-year-old boy was grazed in that shooting, and police said no arrests had been made in the homicide in the latest reports. For families following both cases, the coming dates matter now: Brown’s June 2 appearance will be the next public checkpoint, and the Dec. 7 trial is where the county’s most closely watched youth-gun violence case is set to move into a full courtroom test.
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