An Allegheny County judge today ruled that a Mt. Lebanon teen intended to kill his ex-girlfriend in a hammer attack in 2007, whether or not she was injured with the hammer.

Juvenile Court Judge Kim Berkeley Clark announced the decision this morning following a three-day trial for Robertino DeAngelis, 17, who threw himself in front of a light-rail train right after the assault, suffering grave injuries.

Whether with his hands or the hammer the victim recovered from the fight, the judge said she believed Mr. DeAngelis caused serious bodily injury to Sarah DeIuliis, 18, on Oct. 31, 2007, and planned to kill her. His backpack containing a butcher knife, a box cutter and duct tape was found near the train tracks.

In what she called the most difficult decision in a decade on the bench, Judge Clark found the defendant delinquent of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and unlawful restraint.

Mr. DeAngelis, dressed in a dark suit, sky blue dress shirt and tie, kept his elbow planted on the defense table and his face buried in his hand during the ruling and thereafter.

After the ruling, the victim stood, flanked by her parents, and spoke, in a soft shaky voice about living in fear that Mr. DeAngelis, who is on electronic monitoring, would attack her again. As his health improves and he becomes more mobile, she said, she feared that the kind of person who is willing to throw himself in front of a train would have no qualms about harming her again.

The judge said she was inclined to send Mr. DeAngelis to a secure facility like the New Castle Youth Development Center, but delayed her decision until Oct. 6, after the defendant can undergo medical and psychiatric testing by the county's contracted evaluator, Dr. Ronald Neeper.

The young man's mother, Diana DeAngelis, expressed to the judge her concerns that her son's ongoing medical problems be addressed by whatever facility she chooses. She said his most serious injury was not sustained in the train accident but when he was being transported between facilities and medical personnel did not know his age. She said they intubated the then-16-year-old with a tube meant for an adult, causing a perilous condition where his windpipe continually closes.