CASPER (WNE) — On a dreary Friday morning, more than a dozen people gathered outside Courtroom 1A of the Townsend Justice Center to witness the end of the prosecution of the killer of 17-year-old Lene’a Brown, who was shot dead near Buckboard Park on May 14. 

Most of those hearing attendees wore red in one form or another to support Brown. Clad in flannel shirts, hoodies and T-shirts, they lined the left rows of the courtroom ahead of the trial. 

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Eavan Castaner walked into the courtroom at 10:30 a.m. wearing a red jumpsuit, his hair in a slightly overgrown buzz cut. The 16-year-old’s shackles jingled quietly as he shuffled to meet with his attorney. 

Castaner pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and misdemeanor stalking, the latter of which will be fulfilled as time served. Second-degree murder carries a penalty of 20 years to life in prison. 

Castaner was initially charged with first-degree murder and stalking, but the charge was amended as part of the plea deal. 

Castaner’s guilty plea concluded nearly six months of litigation and came after a motion to move the trial to juvenile court that was ultimately never heard. 

Brown’s May death came as a shock to a Casper community already reeling from the death of another teen, Bobby Maher, who was stabbed to death at Eastridge Mall in April. 

The Blue Heart Collaborative, founded in the wake of Maher’s death to raise awareness about bullying and youth mental health, also held events to honor the life of Lene’a Brown.