Teen accused of killing family moved out of juvenile system in South Lake Tahoe

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It's been almost two years since Nolen Buchanan of Benicia, California first appeared in a Placerville courtroom as a 16-year-old, charged with the killing of his family in their El Dorado County vacation home and then setting it on fire.

The charred remains of Buchanan's father Adam, 38, his father's fiancée Molly McAffe, 37, and his 8-year-old brother, Gavin, were found in that Greenwood cabin on September 13, 2015.

Since that time, Nolen has been in the Juvenile Treatment Center (JTC) in South Lake Tahoe.

The journey has been a long one to this point, and one that moved through uncharted territory due to the passage of Proposition 57 in November 2016. The ballot measure was approved by voters and changed juvenile law in California, giving judges sole power to grant or deny prosecutors’ requests to remove a youth from juvenile court to be tried as an adult in the criminal system.

All juvenile cases being heard in the judicial system at the time of the passage of Prop. 57 had to adhere to the specifics outlined in the new procedures. For those being tried as adults, their cases had to be referred back to juvenile court for decisions by judges.

When Nolen was arrested, the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office decided to try him as an adult, something they were able to do pre-Prop. 57. After Prop. 57 passed, things had to change in Nolen's case and everything went back to the juvenile court system, in sense, starting over.

As a resident in the JTC, Nolen turned 17, then 18, and attended high school classes.

During this time his fate was being heard in Judge Suzanne Kingsbury's court. She read the Grand Jury report, heard from prosecutors, Nolen's defense attorney Lori London, family members, JTC personnel and others involved, all in a confidential juvenile court setting with Nolen present.

After months of court proceedings, Kingsbury made the decision to move Nolen's case out of the juvenile system and try him in a court of law as an adult.

He plead not guilty in Kingsbury's El Dorado County courtroom on Thursday.

On September 29. 2017, Nolen was moved from the JTC and into the County Jail in South Lake Tahoe where he will remain with no bail until his March 13, 2018 trial.