AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) A teenager who told authorities she “snapped” and killed her parents while struggling with gender identity is going to prison for 40 years.
A judge imposed the sentence Tuesday on Andrea Balcer minutes after she asked for her family’s forgiveness.
Her attorney argued that the 17-year-old was dealing with a gender transition from Andrew to Andrea in isolation and without family support. She had no criminal record before the violence early on Oct. 31, 2016, in the family’s Winthrop home.
Family and friends disputed any notion that the parents, Alice and Antonio Balcer, weren’t supportive of Andrea.
Carl Pierce, Alice’s brother, said the suggestion that gender identity played a role was an “insult” to the parents’ memory.
