Teens plead guilty in taxi driver shooting death

<p>Two teenage boys were sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to murder in the shooting death of a taxi cab driver.</p><p>Nestor Hernandez, 17, and Miguel Reyes, 15, were sentenced as adults under Georgia law and will not be eligible for parole until 2018.</p><p>Prosecutors said Hernandez shot 53-year-old Abelino Juarez during an apparent robbery on June 8, 2003, possibly as part of a gang initiation. Juarez drove his Micro Taxi cab into a telephone pole after he was shot in the chest.</p><p>Reyes' attorney, James Gibert, said the plea was the best option for his client because it could mean an earlier parole and because Hernandez, who pleaded guilty first, was set to testify against Reyes if the case went to trial.</p><p>"It was already going to be an uphill struggle," he said, adding that gang initiation was also a possible motive in the crime.</p><p>Hernandez's attorney, Marc Cella, could not be reached for comment.</p>

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