Girl, 17, Gets 23 Years In Fatal Shooting Of Boyfriend's Mother

PORT ANGELES - A 17-year-old girl was sentenced yesterday to more than 23 years in prison in the slaying of her boyfriend's mother.

Trina Stern was convicted in September of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Carol Bircher in June 1996.

Stern was a runaway who had been staying at the Bircher home, and Carol Bircher had threatened to turn her in to break up Stern's relationship with Bircher's son David, prosecutors said.

David Bircher, 17, was tried in October but the jury was unable to reach a verdict. His retrial on first-degree murder charges is scheduled to start Jan. 5.