The teen didn’t look like someone who was about to face sentencing for a string of burglaries across his suburban

Ohio neighborhood. Instead, he looked like he owned the place—hands shoved into the pockets of his hoodie, a smirk playing on his lips.

As Alan Whitmore, a seasoned man, watched the boy swagger toward the defendant’s table.

Previously, he had presided over hardened criminals, tearful first-time offenders,

and people genuinely remorseful for their actions. Yet, Ryan was different.

The teen boy had been arrested three times in the past year: shoplifting, car break-ins,

and finally breaking into a family’s home while they were away.