Hearing on whether teen can be tried as adult in paddleboarder’s death may not happen until 2027
Teen Charged with Murder of Union Paddleboarder Faces Delayed Adult Trial
Union, Maine – A hearing to decide whether 18‑year‑old Deven Young can be tried as an adult in the murder of 48‑year‑old Sunshine Stewart is likely to be postponed until early 2027, court officials said Monday.
Young, who was 17 when the death occurred in July 2025, is currently held at the Long Creek Youth Development Center and is being prosecuted as a juvenile. Prosecutors for the Office of the Maine Attorney General want to move the case to adult court, but a bind‑over hearing – a judicial review of the state’s request – must first be held.
Judge Eric Walker of the Knox County District Court did not set a date for the bind‑over hearing during a Zoom conference that drew more than 50 participants, including lawyers, reporters and supporters who used the hashtag “#JusticeforSunny” on their screensavers. Walker noted he would reconvene in November to discuss whether the hearing could be scheduled this year. “I’m just concerned that we’re now talking January or February,” Walker said. “I’m looking to the attorneys for some kind of help to see if we can possibly have this scheduled earlier.”
Defending Young, represented by attorney Jeremy Pratt, said that the defense’s mental‑health expert will need at least three months to complete an evaluation after the state’s expert finished a diagnostic report on August 1. Pratt also explained that the defense expert had spent more than a month meeting with Young at Long Creek and that any delays were not attributable to the defense team. He asked that the bind‑over hearing be set for sometime after January 18.
Prosecutor Lisa Bogue said she would not be available during that week because she was scheduled to testify in a double homicide trial in Oxford County. Bogue reiterated the state’s preference for an earlier hearing but acknowledged that the defense must have time to retain its own expert.
Young’s file, like most juvenile cases, is largely sealed under Maine’s strict privacy rules, and much of the material has not been released to the public. The state’s diagnostic report was referenced during the conference but its findings were not discussed. In April, a court found Young competent to stand trial.
The case arose after Sunshine Stewart was found dead near a campsite in Union where she had been paddleboarding. A 48‑year‑old woman, she was described by friends as “strong and independent.” Earlier public records from the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office—unrelated to Stewart’s death—documented that Young had been involved in a series of altercations and had spent three years on a waitlist for behavioral‑health services.
The hearing’s delay has drawn attention from the local community, with many expressing frustration over the prolonged legal process. The court’s final decision on the bind‑over hearing is still pending, and observers expect the next update to come in late 2026.
