Judge deciding whether to try Hutchinson teen as adult in fatal arson

Reno County Chief Judge Patricia Macke Dick took the case of a Hutchinson teenager accused of killing his sister and mother in a 2013 house fire under advisement and will determine at a later date whether the teen will face trial as an adult.

A closed hearing was held Monday in the Reno County Courthouse for Sam Vonachen, 14. He faces two counts of premeditated first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and aggravated arson in connection with the fire that killed his 11-year-old sister, Audrey, and his mother, Karla Jo Vonachen, 47. His father, Steve Vonachen, escaped.

In October, District Attorney Keith Schroeder provided details about the fatal fire, which occurred Sept. 26, 2013, along with statements from the teen at the time, to explain why the case should be moved away from the protections of juvenile court.

“His own father is afraid of him,” Schroeder wrote in the October motion. “The respondent has openly declared he is a danger to people in the future and indicated he might immediately harm other teens in detention.

“He has shown no remorse and is unemotional about killing his mother and sister. … It doesn’t seem to bother him that they are gone.”

The motion alleges that the teenager confessed to setting the fire and killing his mother and sister, adding he set the fire in a “manner designed to trap them in the upstairs bedrooms.”

“He poured gasoline throughout the downstairs rooms twice, to ‘do a thorough job,’ ” Schroeder wrote in the motion. “He waited until his family was in bed before pouring gasoline in the doorways and stairway to block their escape.”

Macke Dick would not comment on the decision or the hearing. She closed the case proceedings to the public in November and barred anyone involved in the case from discussing details.

Sam Vonachen’s attorney, Greg Bell, noted in an October motion that the case should be closed because Vonachen is a juvenile and any further release of information would put in danger the defendant’s right to a fair trial and that prejudicial information had already been disseminated by the media and the district attorney’s motion.

This story was originally published September 30, 2014 at 6:13 AM with the headline "Judge deciding whether to try Hutchinson teen as adult in fatal arson."