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Prosecutors have dropped charges against a 12-year-old boy accused of participating in the fatal bashing of Sunshine shopkeeper Van Viet Truong, citing legal principles that presume children under 14 are incapable of criminal intent. The incident occurred on August 2 when Mr. Truong, 60, was allegedly attacked by a group of youths while coming to the aid of another worker. Three other teenagers aged 15 and two 14 years old still face charges including manslaughter, violent disorder, affray, and assault-related offenses.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In Sunshine, Victoria, prosecutors dropped assault charges against a 12-year-old boy involved in an alleged fatal bashing of shopkeeper Van Viet Truong. The case was dismissed due to the presumption under Australian law that children aged 12 or 13 are not criminally responsible for their actions. Mr. Truong, who had run the Hong Hung Asian Grocery for nearly three decades and was well-regarded in his community, died days after being attacked on August 2 when he came to assist a fellow worker during an altercation with youths over stolen items. Of the five initially arrested, charges remain against three other teenagers, including one upgraded to manslaughter after Mr. Truong’s death.
Written for “Child Charges Dropped After Grocer Death” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 64912 · logged 2026-10-08
In short:
Assault charges against a 12-year-old boy, laid after an alleged fatal bashing in Sunshine, have been dropped by prosecutors.
asserted
charges → lay → prosecutors
Prosecutors conceded they could not prove the boy was criminally liable in the alleged assault due to his young age.
uncertain
boy → concede → age
Three other teenagers still face charges over the alleged attack in August.
asserted
teenagers → face → August
Prosecutors have dropped the case against a 12-year-old boy who was charged after the alleged fatal bashing of Sunshine shopkeeper Van Viet Truong.
asserted
who → drop → Truong
Mr Truong, 60, was allegedly attacked by a group of youths on August 2 after coming to the aid of a fellow retail worker.
uncertain
Truong → attack → worker
He died in hospital days later.
asserted
He → die → hospital
Mr Truong ran the Hong Hung Asian Grocery for nearly three decades, and was a well-known figure in his local business community.
asserted
Truong → run → community
Five children were initially arrested, however charges only remain against three.
asserted
charges → arrest → three
Today, prosecutors withdrew charges of violent disorder, affray and two assault-related charges against the 12-year-old boy, conceding they could not prove he was criminally liable.
uncertain
he → withdraw → boy
The doli incapax legal principles presumes children younger than 14 are incapable of criminal intent.
asserted
children → presume → intent
In order for the case to have continued, prosecutors would have needed to prove the boy knew his alleged actions were morally wrong.
asserted
actions → continue → ?
A prosecutor told the Children's Court that the case had been reviewed and the Crown would not be able to successfully rebut the Doli Incapax presumption.
asserted
Crown → tell → presumption
"The prosecution will have to withdraw the charges," she said.
asserted
she → have → charges
In a statement, Victoria Police said advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions confirmed there were "no reasonable prospects of conviction" in relation to the boy due to the presumption at law that a child who is 12 or 13 is not criminally responsible for their actions.
asserted
who → say → actions
"The family of the victim has been notified and we will continue to support them throughout this process.
asserted
we → notify → process
Our thoughts are with them today," a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
asserted
spokesperson → say → them
Three other teenagers to face court over alleged assault
The case against the other teenagers will continue.
asserted
case → face → teenagers
A 15-year-old is accused of manslaughter, while two 14-year-old girls are charged with violent disorder, affray and assault-related offences.
asserted
girls → accuse → disorder
Last month, a police officer told the court the alleged attack on Mr Troung was captured on security cameras.
"The entire incident goes for approximately one minute so it's quite chaotic," she said.
asserted
she → tell → minute
The lawyer for the 12-year-old said his involvement was "secondary".
asserted
involvement → say → old
He said the education department had blocked the Year 6 student from returning to school while the case was before the courts.
asserted
case → say → courts
"It is having an enormous impact on him," he said.
asserted
he → have → him
The 15-year-old charged with manslaughter is due to face court next on October 21.
asserted
old → charge → October
The 14-year-old girls remain on bail after being released in August.
asserted
girls → remain → August
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