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Jusiah Jones, center, looks at his family members while he and Nelson Nunez, right, attend their bond hearing in Judge Richard Hersch\u2019s courtroom. They are two of the three boys charged as adults in the rape of a 12-year-old girl. This hearing took place on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida.<\/p>\n
Carl Juste<\/p>\n
cjuste@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Two of the three boys charged as adults in the rape of a 12-year-old girl in Overtown requested that a judge release them from jail pending their trials.<\/p>\n
Attorneys for Nelson Nunez, 13, and Jusiah Jones, 12, on Wednesday appeared in court for an Arthur hearing, which allows judges to consider setting bonds for defendants charged with crimes that aren\u2019t normally eligible for bail.<\/p>\n
Nunez, Jones and Xavier Tyson, 15, were charged with sexual battery, kidnapping and false imprisonment. Their cases are being handled in adult court before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Richard Hersch.<\/p>\n
All three boys have pleaded not guilty. Tyson, who is out on bond, briefly appeared at the hearing.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Miami boys, 12 and 13, charged as adults in 12-year-old girl\u2019s rape in Overtown<\/a><\/p>\n Prosecutors are seeking to keep Nunez and Jones behind bars as they await trial, citing the gravity of their charges. The special bond hearing began on Wednesday, with Jones\u2019 attorney, Jean-Michel D\u2019Escoubet, calling several of the boy\u2019s loved ones to testify.<\/p>\n In an Arthur hearing, the state has to establish that \u201cproof is evident and the presumption great\u201d that the accused person is guilty. This is a high burden \u2014 often considered even greater than proof beyond a reasonable doubt.<\/p>\n During the hearing, D\u2019Escoubet said Nunez threatened Jones, coercing him into participating in the assault. Jones is accused of pinning down the victim and stuffing rocks in her mouth to try to keep her from screaming. The victim, the attorney said, also told police she believed Jones was \u201cpressured.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c[Jones] was the only one of the … boys who actually took pause and had a conscious and said, \u2018We should stop. This is going too far. This is rape. We shouldn\u2019t be doing this,\u2019 \u201d D\u2019Escoubet said.<\/p>\n Supporters urge release<\/p>\n Jones\u2019 mother, Tecola Williams, said her son would be living with her if he is released. Williams said she is an at-home nail tech and can keep on eye on him when he\u2019s not in school.<\/p>\n Williams said she and Jones\u2019 father, Mervin Jones Sr., who lives in Maryland, talk to Jones on the phone every day to \u201cuplift his spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n The boy, Williams said, has been receiving mentorship from the Circle of Brotherhood, an organization of mostly Black men with a stated mission of addressing community problems. Jones continued being involved with the group after he was released from juvenile detention last year following an arrest that ended with prosecutors not pursuing charges.<\/p>\n \u201cHe stayed out of trouble,\u201d Williams said.<\/p>\n Earnest Hardy, who has been a mentor with the Circle of Brotherhood for 6 years, said in court that he is shocked by the allegations against Jones.<\/p>\n The boy, he said, is unlike many of the dozens of children he has mentored. Jones is not defiant, keeps to himself and has a family who supports him, Hardy said.<\/p>\n \u201cEver since I met this kid, it was surprising that he is in this situation,\u201d said Hardy, who became a \u201clife coach\u201d after serving a prison sentence and being shot several times, leading to him becoming paralyzed.<\/p>\n While behind bars, Jones has received violent threats from two other boys because of the nature of his charges, his attorney said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s too young to be in there,\u201d Hardy said. \u201c… There is no rehabilitation.\u201d<\/p>\n The hearing will continue on Thursday morning.<\/p>\n A harrowing assault<\/p>\n The rape happened around 10 p.m. on June 18 in the garden area of the Green Haven Project community at 1160 NW Second Ave., according to a police report.<\/p>\n The girl told Miami Special Victims Unit detectives that Nunez grabbed her as she left her friend\u2019s house and took her to a couch in the garden. There, Jones and Tyson held her arms and legs down to prevent her from escaping, according to the report.<\/p>\n Nunez then began raping her while Jones stuffed rocks in her mouth to try to stop her from screaming, detectives said in the report.<\/p>\n The horrifying ordeal lasted about 30 minutes, the girl told police, only ending after the boys ran away when they heard the victim\u2019s father calling out her name in the distance, the report says.<\/p>\n The father and a witness, who\u2019s a neighbor of the girl, were the first to report the incident to police, the report alleges. The witness flagged down officers the next day and told them she believed the girl was raped.<\/p>\n She said that between 10 and 10:30 p.m., she was picking up her mail and heard a girl screaming, \u201cStop. I\u2019m not playing. I\u2019m not playing,\u201d according to the report.<\/p>\n The woman then yelled out into the distance, \u201cWho\u2019s screaming?\u201d she told detectives. She then saw her neighbor, the girl\u2019s father, yelling out for his daughter, the report states.<\/p>\n There was another boy who was with the group, but police say he did not participate in the attack. He told detectives he did not intervene because he \u201cwas afraid of getting beat up.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Jusiah](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MIA_05TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\" "\\"MIA_05TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\\"")
Jusiah Jones, center right, looks at his family members while he and Nelson Nunez, right, attend a bond hearing in Judge Richard Hersch\u2019s courtroom. They are two of the three boys charged as adults in the rape of a 12-year-old girl. This hearing took place on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n![\"Jusiah](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MIA_04TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\" "\\"MIA_04TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\\"")
Jusiah Jones looks at his family members during his bond hearing in Judge Richard Hersch\u2019s courtroom. He is one of the three boys charged as adults in the rape of a 12-year-old girl. This hearing took place on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n![\"Nelson](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MIA_01TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\" "\\"MIA_01TEENRAPECASEBONDHEARING.JPG\\"")
Nelson Nunez, left, and Jusiah Jones exit the courtroom after a bond hearing related to the rape of a 12-year-old girl. The boys appeared in Judge Richard Hersch\u2019s courtroom on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida. Carl Juste cjuste@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
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