Boy Serves Four Years in Neighbor’s Slaying

Joshua Mendez, the boy who shot and killed his 13-year-old neighbor four years ago, was released Monday from a boys’ detention center in Chino.

Mendez, who was 11 at the time of the shooting, served four years of a 14-year sentence for involuntary manslaughter.

Mendez insisted he shot Larry Kiepert by accident. But prosecutors said he aimed and pulled the trigger deliberately, killing Kiepert as he played basketball in his backyard.

Kiepert’s mother, Liz, said she would have liked to see Mendez serve his full sentence, including a 10-year enhancement for using a deadly weapon.