Mum grins as son who killed dad for taking away phone aged 15 AVOIDS prison

A widowed mum grinned as her son was spread jail for killing his father.

Lincoln Peterson, now 16, was just 15-year-old when he killed his father. His mum Abigail Peterson beamed when he was paroled over the shooting of Jeremy Paterson, 45.

Lincoln, who accepted a plea deal in April, killed his dad after his parents decided to take their son’s electronics as a punishment for hisshoddy school grades. Afterwards, they began to suspect Lincoln was “sneaking electronics” and an argument ensued. Abigail allegedly hit Lincoln with a belt during the argument on December 28 last year. As he made to get away from his parents, he fired a handgun that had been left on top of the dryer.

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Lincoln expressed his remorse during his sentencing in Nevada, US, last Thursday. He said: “None of this was ever my intention… I regret all of it.”

Prosecutors, who had hoped Peterson would be behind bars for six to 15 years, pointed out that he had threatened violence before. His sister told investigators he had brandished an unloaded gun in front of his family weeks before, he then pointed the weapon towards his head and pulled the trigger.

The teen was spared jail by Clark County District Judge Tierra Jones, who said she had never seen a defendant have so much support.

He will be on probation for five years, lasting until he is 21. He must undertake counselling and achieve a high school diploma or equivalent certification.

He must also give his parole officers his passwords for electronics and social media accounts and live under a curfew. He must not consume drugs or alcohol.

If he violates his parole, Lincoln could be facing a sentence of between three and 7.5 years in jail.

Prosecutor Laura Rose said she could not "ignore the violence of the case as well as doing something this severe without any type of adequate provocation". She said Lincoln should have been jailed.

“A 15-year-old with some impulse control issues made a really terrible mistake,” she said.

The teen's mum said: "Nothing, nothing compares to losing the love of my life, my husband, and knowing that my own son’s action was the cause... Unless you’ve stood in my place, you cannot understand the depth of the pain that coexists with forgiveness and love.”