MOUNT VERNON — Juvenile Court Judge Jay Nixon ruled Friday that a Knox County teen accused of fatally stabbing his father will be tried as an adult.
Authorities arrested Brice Hay, 17, on Dec. 9, 2025, on charges of aggravated murder and murder in the stabbing death of his father, Kevin Hay. The teen has been held in the Muskingum County Juvenile Detention Center since his arrest.
Under Ohio law, 16- and 17-year-olds must be tried as adults if there is probable cause that they committed a Category 1 offense (mandatory bindover). Category 1 offenses include aggravated murder, murder, or the attempt to commit these crimes.
The court ruled on Feb. 12 that the teenager was competent to stand trial.
Nixon held a probable cause hearing on Feb. 20 as part of the bindover process.
In his ruling, Nixon states that in order to find probable cause to bind over a 16- or 17-year-old charged with aggravated murder and murder for prosecution in an adult court, it must find that the state provided evidence that raises more than a mere suspicion of guilt that the juvenile purposefully, with prior calculation and design, caused the death of another person.
According to the ruling, the state presented evidence that fulfills those requirements.
What’s next?
Knox County Prosecutor Chip McConville said his office will now present the case to a grand jury. If the grand jury returns an indictment, the case starts anew.
“You have the right to have it presented, and with an aggravated murder, you have to present it to a grand jury,” he said.
“We’ll go through the whole normal arraignment procedure in common pleas court that we would do for any adult case, and [Common Pleas] Judge Wetzel will set a bond.”
McConville appreciates that Nixon took time writing his decision.
“There are many pitfalls out there with bindover proceedings, and you don’t want to go through them too hastily. And you want to create a record because the appellate process can be rough if you haven’t done it the right way,” he said.
Hay will remain at the Muskingum Juvenile Detention Facility until July 7.
