Pennsylvania – In a horrific case that left residents in Pennsylvania shocked, a 15-year-old boy, identified as N. Grove, has been sentenced to up to 32 years in prison for shooting and killing his 12-year-old friend, identified as K. Heiland, just hours before their planned sleepover. Grove was convicted in June of third-degree murder in the 2023 shooting death of Heiland. On Thursday, he learned his fate: 15 to 30 years for the murder, an additional one to two years for illegally possessing a firearm as a minor, and five more years of probation for related offenses.
The charges against Grove stemmed not only from the fatal shooting itself but also from his reckless behavior with the weapon throughout the day. He was also convicted of carrying a firearm without a license and four counts of reckless endangerment. The shooting happened on April 1, 2023. That day, Grove had invited Heiland and another friend over. The three boys spent the afternoon hanging out, planning to sleep over at Grove’s house.
But behind the scenes, Grove had already made a dangerous decision. He had taken his father’s gun from a wall-mounted safe in his room. According to multiple witnesses and video evidence, Grove spent much of the day playing with the gun—pointing it at others, activating its laser sight, and acting as if it were a toy. At one point, a screenshot from a FaceTime call showed Grove aiming the gun at Heiland’s torso, the red dot of the laser visible. Surveillance footage later confirmed similar behavior.
Later that evening, around 8:22 p.m., the three boys walked through a neighbor’s yard. Grove reportedly made a crude comment about Heiland’s mother—part of a string of similar remarks he had made all day. Heiland told him to stop. According to testimony from the third friend and the person who remained on the FaceTime call during the shooting, Grove responded with a chilling remark: something like “you know what happens.” Then he pulled the trigger. The bullet struck Heiland in the back, tore through his spinal cord, and pierced his heart. The 12-year-old collapsed almost instantly and died within seconds.
After the shooting, Grove ran after the third friend, who fled in panic. Grove called his father while the other boy rushed to tell his own parents, who contacted police. When questioned by investigators, Grove denied responsibility and claimed he was in his room when he heard the gunshot. Police, however, found that Grove had changed his clothes and washed his hands—actions that raised suspicion. During the trial, Grove took the stand, calling his decision to remove the gun from the safe “probably the dumbest thing I’ve done.” He testified that he didn’t know the gun was loaded, but the court instructed jurors that malice could still be found if they believed he intentionally pointed the weapon without confirming it was unloaded.
That distinction was critical. It led to a conviction not of manslaughter, but of third-degree murder—a charge unique to Pennsylvania, Florida, and Minnesota. The judge ultimately imposed the sentence, which includes consecutive terms for murder and illegal gun possession. Grove received credit for 562 days already served in pretrial detention. Now, the teen faces decades behind bars, and a family is left grieving the loss of a child who had simply planned for a sleepover with friends—never imagining it would be his last night alive.
