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'If you're going to raise a murderer, you're going to take responsibility:' Murdered girl's family sues juvenile killer's parents
Justin Robinson, 16, was sentenced this month to 17 years in prison for 12-year-old Autumn Pasquale's death Justin lured her to his house in New Jersey just a couple blocks from her home with a promise to exchange bike parts and strangled her to death Autumn's father, Anthony Pasquale, has filed a lawsuit against Robinson's parents claiming negligence Pasquale claims in the lawsuit that Robinson's parents should have known that their son was troubled and should have sought treatment for him
By Daily Mail Reporter PUBLISHED: 14:24 GMT, 2 October 2013 | UPDATED: 19:10 GMT, 2 October 2013

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The father of a 12-year-old girl killed by a teenage boy has filed a lawsuit against the boy's parents for negligence. Anthony Pasquale filed the lawsuit against the parents of his daughter Autumn's murderer, Justin Robinson, in Gloucester County Superior Court on September 23, according to NJ.com. 'If you're going to raise a murderer, you're going to take responsibility for it,' said Kathleen Bonczyk, Anthony Pasquale's attorney for the civil complaint.

Off to jail: Justin Robinson, who pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter in the death of Autumn Pasquale, leaves the courtroom after being sentenced to 17 years in prison

Autumn Pasquale was brutally murdered in October in her hometown of Clayton, New

Jersey,

Clues: Justin Robinson 'liked' the Facebook page set up to find Autumn despite knowing she was already dead

Pasquale claims in the lawsuit that Robinson's parents, Anita Saunders and Alonzo Robinson, should have known that their son was troubled and should have sought treatment for him. Specifically, the lawsuit claims the parents should have been aware that their son was 'possibly engaging in the theft of bicycles' and had been negatively affected by witnessing domestic abuse in their home. Robinson, 16, was sentenced to 17 years in prison this month after pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter and admitted to strangling the Clayton Middle School student to death in October last year. He apologized to the family and said, 'This was not supposed to happen,' as he called the killing a 'mistake.' The New Jersey teenager had lured Autumn to his home with an offer to trade bicycle parts.

Prosecutors faced difficulties during the trial including a lack of physical evidence to determine whether he or his brother Dante Robinson, then 17, killed Autumn and they struggled for provide a motive for the killing.

Devastated: Autumn's mother and father, Anthony Pasquale and Jennifer Cornwell, said their daughter was treated 'like a piece of trash'

Life cut short: Authorities found some of Autumns belongings in the teens' house including the white BMX bike she was last seen riding when she left her West High Street home in the New Jersey town

Death wish: Autumn Pasquale's mother Jennifer Cornwell and father Anthony Pasquale say they wish her murderers could be given the death penalty

Grim discovery: Gloucester County prosecutors found the body of Autumn Pasquale in a bin just blocks from her house

The teenager will now spend the next half of his life in prison for the crime, however he will be eligible for parole after 14 years. 'I'm sorry. I never meant for this to happen,' he told Judge Walter Marshall. 'This was all a big mistake.' Relatives of the girl did not see it that way, and some wanted the judge to issue a tougher sentence than the one agreed to in a plea agreement. More than 8,500 people signed an online petition at change.org demanding a stiffer term, but Superior Court Judge Walter Marshall Jr. in Gloucester County accepted a plea deal agreement and the sentence of 17 years. During Robinson's sentencing, family and friends of Autumn many who were hoping for a harsher sentence packed one side of the courtroom. Autumn's parents spoke of their pain since losing their daughter. Addressing the court, Anthony Pasquale said that Robinson's sentence was not nearly long enough and called him a 'murderer who does not deserve to live.' 'I believe the defendant deserves more than 17 years,' said Mr Pasquale, who as a mail carrier had delivered letters to Robinson's family in Clayton, where the families of the victim and her killer had deep roots. 'I believe his fate should be nothing but death.'

Emotional: Jennifer Cornwell, mother of slain child Autumn Pasquale, leaves the courtroom table after making a statement about her daughter during the sentencing of Justin Robinson

When he pleaded guilty, Justin Robinson said he acted alone. During a sentencing proceeding, neither he, his lawyers, nor prosecutors shed light on a motive for the killing, or even what happened beyond what was already known: Pasquale went to his house several blocks from hers after receiving a Facebook offer to trade bike parts on Oct. 20. When she didn't return home that night, her family, then the entire community, set off in a frantic search. Two days later, her body was found in a recycling bin behind the home next to Robinson's. A break in the case for investigators came when the boy's mother, Anita Saunders, called police after seeing something troubling in a Facebook post from one of her sons. Speaking briefly during the sentencing, Saunders told the judge that media accounts of what happened were incorrect. 'Nobody knows exactly what happened the day of the accident,' she said. Robinson's lawyer, Jean Faulkner, told the judge that the boy had post-traumatic stress disorder from being physically abused as a young boy and seeing his father strangle his mother more than once. 'This is a learned behavior,' Faulkner said. Pasquale's family told the judge about Autumn, whom they described as a loving tomboy who wore mismatched socks and loved to ride her BMX bike.

Upset: Anthony Pasquale, father of slain child Autumn Pasquale spoke in court saying her killer Justin Robinson did not deserve to live

Guilty: Justin (pictured left) will now spend the next half of his life behind bars. He plead

guilty in August to choking Autumn last year. His brother Donte Robinson (pictured right) has also been charged with the murder

Innocent: Autumn went round to the brothers house to trade BMX bike parts. Instead, they killed her

They talked about how her disappearance and death touched the town, located 25 miles southeast of Philadelphia. Her old soccer team, once known as the Clayton Comets, is now Autumn's Angels; her jersey number, 14, has been retired from the Clayton Middle School sports teams; a bike path and a park are now named for her. And they told the judge how members of the family, including her siblings and young cousins, are in therapy and dealing with nightmares about her death. 'When I see the blue recycling bins out, I cry to think Autumn's innocent life was so easily discarded like a piece of trash,' said the girl's maternal grandmother, Mary Pasquale, who had taught Justin Robinson in school. A slide show of pictures of Autumn were projected onto a screen in the courtroom. About a dozen family members recalled her as happy, lively young girl who made others laugh.

THE TRAGIC TIMELINE IN THE KILLING OF AUTUMN PASQUALE

OCTOBER 20, 2012: Autumn Pasquale, who was a week away from her 13th birthday, was last seen riding her BMX bicycle, leaving her home in Clayton, New Jersey. Authorities from the Gloucester County police to the FBI joined the search. Her father, Tony Pasquale, told NBC News at the time that the disappearance was not like her'. OCTOBER 21: Hundreds of people gathered at a local church to hand out flyers and form search parties for the freckled blonde. OCTOBER 22: Hundreds more join search efforts for Autumn, spanning into Delaware and New York. After sunset, worried friends and family held a candlelit vigil to pray for her safe return. Not long after the vigil ended, authorities said that they discovered her 5ft2in body dumped in a recycling container five blocks from her home. OCTOBER 23: A press conference was held in the afternoon to say that two brothers, aged 15 and 17, had been arrested for Autumns murder. Authorities also said that the brothers mother, spotting a suspicious post on Facebook, turned them into police. AUGUST 7, 2013: Justin Robinson, 16, pleads guilty to aggravated manslaughter. SEPTEMBER 12, 2013: Justin Robinson, now 17, sentenced to 17 years in jail. He won't be eligible for parole until he has served 85 per cent of his sentence in 2030.

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Comments (91)
Share what you think Newest Oldest Best rated Worst rated View all Report comment Valkyrie87, Florida, United States, 5 days ago STOP STOP STOP! This is painful for the parents of the murderer too! No money in the world will bring your little girl back. JUST STOP. 389 160 Click to rate Report comment Not Amused, Portsmouth, United Kingdom, 5 days ago I'm afraid I agree. Although it's not always the parent's fault especially with mental illness I would say 9 times out of 10 it is the upbringing of the child. 125 355 Click to rate Report comment ralphsgirl, paradise, AZ, 5 days ago Animal! 24 209 Click to rate Report comment BlancheCorona, Los Angeles CA USA, 5 days ago A novel idea! Making parents pay attention and deal with their kids! 76 391 Click to rate Report comment

paz20, Denver, United States, 5 days ago I get it. Her parents are devastated and angry. However the boy's parents weren't on trial - he was. Regardless of his upbringing, he has free will and he used his free will to commit a serious crime. There isn't an amount of money in this world that will bring her back, so instead of attacking his parents they should focus on healing themselves. 229 179 Click to rate

Report comment Cherry, New York City, 5 days ago GOOD! 98 233 Click to rate Report comment CB, Grand Rapids - USA, 5 days ago This is a hard lawsuit to win, as sad as it is for the victim's family. There are a lot of stupid teens out there and if these lawsuits were easy to win, our court system would be inundated with suits against stupid parents of stupid teens. I do agree, however, that there should be laws holding parents financially accountable to some extent for the havoc their offspring wreck upon society. It's kinda hard to bring a negligence or wrongful death suit against a 16 year old who's going to be spending a good chunk of his adult life in prison - loser teens simply aren't collectible - yet the harm they cause is borne by others, why not make their parents take some responsibility? 26 136 Click to rate Report comment chrisemt74, New Haven, United States, 5 days ago I'm not saying good parenting might have prevented this. But, at the end of the day, the killer is the one who is responsible. He murdered the victim. No one else did. Blaming people for another's actions won't fix things. May the victim's family find peace. 57 221 Click to rate Report comment Lauren, Ohio USA, 5 days ago Their own mother turned them into the police. I understand the parents of this poor girl are suffering, but I am sure that the other set of parents is suffering as well. Can you imagine finding out the children you raised are capable of this? 43 322 Click to rate Report comment Hadlee, Minneapolis, United States, 5 days ago *sigh* I'm sad that this family lost their beautiful daughter, but is suing the parents really the answer?

74 139 Click to rate The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

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