City News, PUBLIC SAFETY

Teen sentenced to 90 months in prison for 2021 shooting

A Marion County circuit judge on Monday sentenced a teen to 90 months in prison for shooting at a man outside a Salem gas station in 2021.

Kye R. Alfaro, 16, pleaded guilty in Marion County Circuit Court on Monday to attempted first-degree assault with a firearm.

Alfaro shot at and missed an occupied vehicle in the Northgate area, but did hit a parked car and ice machine, the Marion County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. He was 15 at the time of the shooting.

The teen was sentenced through a stipulated agreement where he agreed to be convicted in adult court.

Senate Bill 1008, passed in 2019, gives judges discretion on whether to charge teens 15 and older as adults for violent crimes. Previously, those charged with violent crimes were automatically treated as adults – meaning they were prosecuted in adult courts and received the same sentences as their older peers.

 Teens convicted of violent crimes would go to an Oregon Youth Authority facility in lieu of state prison, but if they didn’t complete their sentence before turning 25, they were transferred to the adult system to finish their sentence.

The reform allowed for a “second look” hearing before someone convicted as a juvenile ages out of the youth system and into the state Department of Corrections, allowing them to argue they have been reformed and shouldn’t serve time in prison.

Alfaro will complete his sentence in the youth authority before he is 25, when he would otherwise be moved to state prison. He will be eligible for release after 45 months, halfway through his sentence, through “second look” proceedings.

The district attorney’s office provided an account of the shooting in its statement Monday night.

Around 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 4, 2021, Salem police responded to reports of shots fired near ARCO/AM-PM on Northeast Portland Road. Officers determined that four shots had been fired at an occupied vehicle outside the gas station.

“The shots missed the intended target” but struck a parked vehicle with no one inside, as well as an ice machine in front of the business, according to the statement.

Salem police “after a lengthy investigation” determined Alfaro was involved, and he eventually admitted to firing the shots, the district attorney’s office wrote.

Alfaro had previously been committed to the Oregon Youth Authority and was on parole from the state agency at the time of the shooting, according to the statement. His previous juvenile offense could not be established.

Correction: This story was updated to reflect the correct spelling of Alfaro’s name. Salem reporter regrets the error.

This story was also updated to clarify that Alfaro will complete his sentence in the Oregon Youth Authority.

Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.

SUBSCRIBE TO GET SALEM NEWS  We report on your community with care and depth, fairness and accuracy. Get local news that matters to you. Subscribe today to get our daily newsletters and more. Click I want to subscribe!

Ardeshir Tabrizian has covered criminal justice and housing for Salem Reporter since September 2021. As an Oregon native, his award-winning watchdog journalism has traversed the state. He has done reporting for The Oregonian, Eugene Weekly and Malheur Enterprise.

Tags: