Jury finds 15-year-old boy guilty in Zoloft defense

After about six hours of deliberations, the 15-year-old who claimed the antidepressant drug Zoloft drove him to kill his grandparents was found guilty of murder Tuesday in a Charleston courtroom. Defendant Christopher Pittman, center, was later sentenced to 30 years in prison. (AP Photo/Alan Hawes, Pool)

Associated Press Writer

CHARLESTON, S.C. — A 15-year-old boy who claimed the antidepressant Zoloft drove him to kill his grandparents was found guilty of murder Tuesday and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Christopher Pittman hung his head as the verdict was read after about six hours of deliberations. He spoke briefly to the court before the sentence was handed down.

‘‘I know it’s in the hands of God. Whatever he decides on, that’s what it’s going to be,’’ Pittman said quietly.

The trial was the first case involving a youngster who says an antidepressant caused him to kill, Pittman’s lawyer said. It came at a time of heightened scrutiny over the use of antidepressants among children.

Pittman cried as his father and other family members asked for leniency.

‘‘I love my son with all of my heart,’’ said Joe Pittman, whose parents were the victims. ‘‘And my mom and dad, if they were here today, would be begging for mercy as well.’’

Defense attorneys had urged the jury to send a message to the nation by blaming Zoloft for the killings. They said the negative effects of Zoloft are more pronounced in youngsters, and the drug affected Pittman so he did not know right from wrong.

‘‘We do not convict children for murder when they have been ambushed by chemicals that destroy their ability to reason,’’ attorney Paul Waldner said.

But prosecutors called the Zoloft defense a smoke screen, saying the then-12-year-old Pittman knew exactly what he was doing three years ago when he shot his grandparents, torched their house and then drove off in their car.

Prosecutor Barney Giese said the real motivation for the crime was the boy’s anger at his grandparents for disciplining him for choking a younger student on a school bus. And he reminded jurors how the boy carried out the killings — shooting his grandfather in the mouth and his grandmother in her head while both lay sleeping.

‘‘I don’t care how old he is. That is as malicious a killing — a murder — as you are ever going to find,’’ the prosecutor said.