Brick assaulter, 16, sentenced to prison

Zaria Estes, the 16-year-old girl convicted for striking a Temple student twice in the head with a brick last March, was sentenced Wednesday to 2 1/2 to six years in state prison, along with four years of probation and other conditions.

Estes pled guilty in October to aggravated assault, conspiracy and possession of an instrument of crime with intent to harm. Along with the confinement, she will be required to pay $400 in restitution, serve 50 hours of community service per year of court supervision, complete her GED and secure employment before her sentence is completed.

In the proceedings at the Criminal Justice Center at 13th and Filbert streets around 1:30 p.m., Estes spoke to the court toward the end of the three-hour long session, apologizing to the victim, Temple junior Abbey Luffey, for the incident, and said, among other admissions, that she is “disappointed” in her actions.

Luffey was struck once each in the back of the head and in the face, respectively, needing multiple procedures to repair a fractured jaw and extensive oral damage.

Luffey, her mother and her 21-year-old boyfriend who accompanied her at the time of the attack, were among those who testified as character witnesses.

Andrew Parent can be reached at andrew.parent@temple.edu or on Twitter @Andrew_Parent23.