In the course of a year, there are many crime stories. Here is a recap of a some that stood out in the headlines.

Teen to be tried as an adultIn late November, the Lehigh County court system determined that Jamie Lynn Silvonek, 14, will stand trial as an adult for the March stabbing death of her mother, Cheryl Silvonek, in the driveway of their Upper Macungie Township home. The victim was originally from Jim Thorpe.Silvonek and her boyfriend Caleb Barnes, 21, were arrested for the murder. Each has been charged with criminal homicide, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and criminal conspiracy.The duo will be prosecuted in separate trials. If convicted of first-degree murder, Silvonek could face a sentence of 25 years to life. Had Silvonek been tried as a juvenile, she could have been released before her 21st birthday.She is currently being held in Lehigh County Prison.Two life sentencesGarry Flyte, 56, of Saylorsburg, was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for fatally shooting his neighbors with a shotgun in March 2014.Flyte pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder for the deaths of Jeffrey Place, 54, and his stepson, 30-year-old Steven Powell, at their home in Eldred Township. He also shot and killed the family’s dog as it slept on a bed, mistaking it for Jeffrey’s wife, Wendy Place.Prosecutors agreed not to pursue the death penalty against Flyte in exchange for his plea of guilty, but mentally ill. Flyte told police that voices urged him to kill. His defense attorney said Flyte still doesn’t know why he killed his neighbors.Ross Township shooterThe man charged with the shooting deaths of three people at a municipal government meeting in Ross Township in 2013 pleaded guilty to homicide and other charges in May in Monroe County court.Rockne Newell, 61, was sentenced to three consecutive life prison terms, plus 61 to 122 years for killing Ross Township Zoning Officer David Fleetwood, Gerard Kozic and James LaGuardia. Three other people were wounded.Newell had become enraged by Ross Township officials who disagreed with him about his debris-strewn property. The township had received complaints that he lived in a storage shed, built an illegal culvert and used a bucket outside as a toilet. In the months leading up to the shootings, the property had been condemned and purchased by the township at sheriff’s sale. Newell was told by the township that he owed thousands of dollars in fines.Inmate attacks cellmateA Saint Clair man, imprisoned for the murder of a Schuylkill County man, has been charged with attacking his cellmate with a crude “tattoo gun” in Schuylkill County jail.Ethan M. Sullivan, 22, pleaded guilty on June 25 to third-degree murder, aggravated assault and robbery in the death of Jason “Jay” Hahn, 22, of Andreas, for $54 and a pair of sneakers. He was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in state prison.On Aug. 17, Sullivan allegedly attacked Bradley Merwine, 36, with a weapon fashioned from a pen with a staple attached to the end to use for tattooing, according to Pottsville police. Merwine suffered minor injuries.Sullivan faces multiple charges in the incident, including aggravated assault and assault by a prisoner.Mother allegedly tries to kill babyA West Penn Township woman facing attempted murder charges for attempting to drown her infant was released so she can seek mental health treatment.Rachel Minerva Foose, 32, was charged last month after she confessed to relatives and a police officer that she attempted to drown her 1-month-old child in the bathtub on Oct. 23. She is barred from seeing her child.Her bail was reduced, so that she can seek psychiatric treatment.Cellphone robberyElijah Michael Frey, 19, of Nesquehoning, was sentenced to eight to 60 months in a state prison for criminal conspiracy-robbery and one year state probation for resisting arrest. The terms run concurrently.Frey admitted to his part in the robbery of two girls, then ages 12 and 13, which occurred at 7:45 p.m. Jan. 17, in the 300 block of East Center Street, Nesquehoning. The girls said six people approached them and were threatened with serious bodily harm. Three of them were carrying handguns. The suspects took a cellphone from one of the girls.Also charged in the incident were Izael Flores, 18, of Nesquehoning; Tyquan Shakeem Owens, 18, of Lansford; Talon Wesley Lewis, 17, of Summit Hill; and an unnamed juvenile. Lewis is being prosecuted as an adult. A sixth person involved in the incident has never been charged.