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14 YEAR OLD KILLS MATH TEACHER - PHILIP CHISM & COLLEEN RITZER
#1
Danvers, Massachusetts

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Colleen Ritzer, 24, murder victim - teacher

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Philip Chism, 14, murder suspect - student

Haven't seen anything regarding a possible motive yet, but it's confirmed that Chism was a student of Colleen Ritzer.

Snip from Daily Mail article:
Surveillance footage reportedly shows Philip Chism, 14, dragging a recycling bin with 24-year-old Colleen Ritzer's body through the halls of Danvers High School Tuesday night then dumping her remains in the woods near campus.

WCVB-TV reports that after the gruesome killing Chism walked to the nearest movie theater and watched 'Blue Jasmine,' a movie about a middle-aged woman's mental breakdown.

Ritzer's a beloved math teacher at Danvers High was reported missing after she didn't come home after classes ended Tuesday night. When police went to her school, they found a second-floor bathroom covered in her blood.

The teacher's students flooded social media with an outpouring of grief over the murder, describing her as dedicated and bright.

Chism appeared in court Wednesday afternoon, where he was charged as an adult and formally accused of beating Ritzer to death Tuesday night.

The boy's attorney requested a mental health evaluation for the teen and suggested she would argue that he was not mentally competent to stand trial. He was held without bail.

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#2
Chism was reported missing on Tuesday, 10 /22 when he didn't make it home from school.

Ritzer was reported missing later when she didn't return home or answer calls to her cell phone.

When LE located Chism around midnight, they tied the two cases together and later found Ritzer's body.

The criminal complaint/arrest doc for Chism indicates that he killed Ritzer by means of assault and beating. Some media is reporting that she was slashed with a box cutter.

If the box cutter detail is accurate, could be that detail was known at the time of the complaint but not spelled out specifically, or that authorities learned the exact details after his arrest. This one is unraveling quickly, so it could also be a case of false reporting regarding the box cutter - remains to be seen.

Something made prosecutors push him from a scheduled juvenile court arraignment to adult court on the drop of a dime, and without the usual deliberation.

(HOTD Edit 11/22/13 - removed criminal complaint doc due to image size)
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#3
Latest:

Chism had been doodling and listening to music during Colleen Ritzer's algebra I class during the school's final period, classmate Cambria Cloutier told CNN. Creating such drawings was unusual for Chism, and when the final bell sounded at 1:55 p.m. Tuesday, Ritzer asked him to stay after class.

When was Ritzer killed?
Authorities believe Ritzer was killed after school ended at about 2 p.m., but they have not released a specific time.

How was Ritzer killed?
With a box cutter the suspect, Chism, had brought into school, a source close to the investigation says.

What happened to her body afterward?
It was stashed in a recycling bin, rolled outside, then dumped about 20 feet into woods behind the northeastern Massachusetts high school's athletic fields, adds another source. It was left there -- not buried, not even covered.

Where did the alleged killer go afterward?
After changing his clothes, he went to a Wendy's fast-food restaurant and a movie, sources say, before police in a neighboring town saw him walking on a busy road under the pitch-dark sky early Wednesday.

Why was Ritzer killed?
The question of why this happened -- why a popular young educator who always wore a smile and went the extra mile was killed allegedly by a teenager who friends, family and co-workers described as reserved and well-behaved -- continues to loom large.


Full story:
http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/25/justice/ma...l-killing/
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ritzer's funeral mass will be on Monday in her hometown of Andover at St. Augustine Church. Her family said a scholarship has been established to honor her "tireless and dedicated work." It will benefit Andover High School graduates who pursue a teaching career.
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#4
PROSECUTION / CHARGES

14-year-old Philip Chism will be tried as an adult on the murder charge, and as a youthful offender in the aggravated rape and armed robbery charges.

According to court documents, Chism robbed 24-year-old teacher Colleen Ritzer of her cellphone, credit cards and underwear. He allegedly used a box cutter as a weapon and sexually assaulted her with an object.

A date for an arraignment in Superior Court has not been scheduled.


Full story:
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/philip-chism...nd-murder/
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#5
Why separate the charges? He should be charged as an adult for all charges.
Devil Money Stealing Aunt Smiley_emoticons_fies
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#6
(11-22-2013, 02:57 PM)ramseycat Wrote: Why separate the charges? He should be charged as an adult for all charges.

It's confusing; first he was supposed to be arraigned in juvenile court, but it was moved to adult court at the last minute.

The Grand Jury indicted him for murder, for which prosecutors had quickly specified he'd be charged as an adult.

The Grand Jury also indicted him for aggravated robbery and rape and I'm not sure why he's currently charged as a juvenile for those two counts. Maybe it's because he's being held in juvenile detention and prosecutors were focused on getting the murder indictment as quickly as possible, without delaying the Grand Jury until prosecutors could make a case for adult charges on other crimes that could be discovered as the investigation was progressing. Just guessing.

Anyway, looks like all of the charges will be merged before he goes to trial.

Snip:
Chism is facing the murder charge as an adult. He was indicted as a youthful offender on the rape and armed robbery charges. The latter charges will initially be handled in Salem Juvenile Court, but prosecutors said they “would move to join these indictments with the murder indictment in Superior Court.”

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massach...story.html
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#7
I can't believe this guy went to eat and a movie after doing this.

Can you imagine what the defense is going to be?

Make it the teacher's fault
Claim some sort of mental disorder
Claim an affair gone wild
Self defense
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#8


I read a report that said her throat was slit & she was nude from the waist down. It went on to say that a note was found with her, "I hate you all" or something to that affect.
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#9


Here's a link to the story I got that from.

Story
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#10
Well he sounds like a right little shitbox, string him up by his balls. Fucking drain on society.
(08-08-2010, 06:37 PM)Maggot Wrote: May your ears turn into arseholes and shit on your shoulders......Smiley_emoticons_smile

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#11
(11-22-2013, 05:36 PM)Miss Vickie Wrote: I can't believe this guy went to eat and a movie after doing this.

Good thing this kid wasn't more discreet and got removed from society early.

When I first read that he stole her credit card after raping and killing her, I wondered if that's how he paid for the Wendy's dinner and movie that night.

Damned cold and detached behavior. I think the defense is gonna have an uphill battle defending Chism given the surveillance video evidence and his post-crime behavior and will probably go for "mental defect".

(11-22-2013, 06:22 PM)Duchess Wrote:

Here's a link to the story I got that from.
Story

Thanks for the link, Duchess - some key new details released today.

Snip:
A student whose name was concealed in the document told police that the day of the killing, she had stayed for extra help after class and heard Ritzer and Chism talking.

Ritzer mentioned Tennessee, and Chism appeared upset, but the teacher didn't appear to notice and kept talking about it. When Ritzer noticed he was upset, she changed the topic, but the student noticed Chism talking to himself.

According to the documents, surveillance video showed Chism putting on gloves and with a hood over his head as he followed Ritzer into a bathroom. The documents say he brought a box cutter, mask, gloves and multiple changes of clothing to school the day Ritzer was killed.

Her body was found in the woods, partly covered in leaves, and police said it appeared to be sexually positioned. Authorities say she had been sexually assaulted with a stick.
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#12
(11-22-2013, 06:53 PM)HairOfTheDog Wrote: The documents say he brought a box cutter, mask, gloves and multiple changes of clothing to school the day Ritzer was killed.

Surely it doesn't get any more premeditated than that? How will that affect a mental defect claim?
“Two billion people will perish globally due to being vaccinated against Corona virus” - rothschild, August 2021
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#13
(11-22-2013, 06:57 PM)crash Wrote:
(11-22-2013, 06:53 PM)HairOfTheDog Wrote: The documents say he brought a box cutter, mask, gloves and multiple changes of clothing to school the day Ritzer was killed.

Surely it doesn't get any more premeditated than that? How will that affect a mental defect claim?

Yeah, looks like premeditation will be a slam dunk, unless the defense can show that he always brought those items with him to school (for soccer, shop class, etc...).

Mentally defective people plan ahead of time a lot, but unlike others, their planning is often based on irrational fears and scenarios that exist only in their minds.

So, I don't think premeditation would hurt a "mental defect" defense. But, if premeditation is proven, it would render a "crime of passion / snapped" defense invalid. IMO.
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#14
I'm always at a loss with mental defect claims. On one hand I think a lot of these people are very smart, normally functioning human beings who are seeking an excuse for a defense, on the other hand, what kind of normally functioning human being kills somebody.
“Two billion people will perish globally due to being vaccinated against Corona virus” - rothschild, August 2021
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#15
I know what you mean, crash. One would have to be a defective person to kill someone for reasons other than self defense or protection of others.

I'm not familiar with Australian criminal justice, but "insanity" is a hard defense to sell in US courts. Lots of us are defective, but very few (who are not diagnosed with some form of schizophrenia and are intelligent enough to be deemed competent to stand trial) don't know that it's wrong to violate or kill someone. So "insanity" doesn't apply. To be legally insane, the accused has to have not known what they were doing or not not known what they were doing was wrong.

So, then it comes down to proving that there was an abnormal condition (defect) of the mind when the crime was committed; "temporary insanity". Legally, in the US, "mental disease or defect" is defined as "any abnormal condition of the mind which substantially affects mental or emotional processes and impairs behavior controls." That gives defense attorneys some room to play.

What I've seen attempted most often is the accused claiming that the victim caused them such mental or emotional trauma that they were unable to control themselves from striking out, even though they would never have committed such a crime without that alleged victim-induced trauma.

Lorena Bobbit claimed she couldn't help herself from cutting off her husband's penis because of his alleged abuse and cheating. She was actually acquitted. That shocked me.

The Menendez brothers claimed they couldn't help themselves from executing their parents because of their father's alleged sexual and emotional abuse. Betty Broderick claimed she couldn't help herself from killing her ex-husband and his new wife in their sleep because they treated her unfairly and shabbily. They were all convicted of murder.

Anyway, I hope Chism decides to plead guilty rather than go to trial. Nothing's been released to indicate that he didn't know right from wrong as he conducted his daily life. And, there's been nothing released to indicate that Ms. Ritzer was anything but a good devoted teacher, to him and all of her students.

There was a bit in the news today about how his father was abusive though. So, maybe the defense will try to make a case around Ms. Ritzer somehow reminding him of his father's actions and that he was uncontrollably triggered and lashing out at his father when he killed Ritzer.

Or, maybe they'll try to make the jury believe that Ms. Ritzer had abused him in some way and he couldn't control himself from lashing out at her.

Hard to believe either scenario, especially when you throw in the rape and robbery. But, the favored US criminal defense "some other guy did it" is out of the question for Chism - LE has him on tape committing portions of the crime and in possession of stolen goods. So, the defense attorneys are gonna have to get really creative if this goes to trial.

Like Miss Vickie, I'm very interested to see how this plays out.
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#16
An Update on this asshole

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/04/justice/ma...f=obinsite

Teen pleads not guilty to rape, murder of high school math teacher

(CNN) -- Philip Chism, 14, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to murder, aggravated rape and robbery charges in connection with the killing of his high school math teacher, Colleen Ritzer.
The Massachusetts teenager is accused of killing Ritzer, 24, on October 22 in the girls' bathroom of Danvers High School with a box cutter he had taken to school.
In Wednesday's Superior Court hearing, Chism -- wearing khakis, a blue sweater, a white shirt and tie -- was ordered held without bail; his next court date was set for 2 p.m. on January 30. During the 11-minute hearing, he sat quietly, his hands cuffed in front of him.
According to a police affidavit unsealed last month, a ninth-grade student told investigators that Chism became visibly upset when Ritzer spoke after class on the day of the crime about his home state of Tennessee.

When Ritzer noticed that Chism was upset, she changed the subject, said the unidentified student, who described Chism as "talking to himself."
Denise Regan, Chism's public defender, has declined to comment.
The affidavit includes testimony from witnesses as well as a school video surveillance timeline showing Chism and Ritzer in the same area of the school during the teacher's final moments.
In the video, Ritzer appears to enter a second-floor girls' restroom -- apparently a faculty restroom was occupied -- and Chism, wearing gloves and red sweatshirt with the hood pulled over his head, appears to enter the restroom about a minute later, according to the affidavit.
Shortly after, a female student enters the bathroom and then quickly walks out, according to the court papers. She told investigators she saw the back of a person who appeared to be changing clothes; the person's rear was exposed, with clothes piled on the floor.

The video shows Chism leaving the restroom, returning later with a recycling barrel, and again leaving the restroom pulling the barrel -- this time with a black mask on his forehead, the court papers say. He pulls the barrel outside the building and toward the student parking lot. Investigators said the video shows what appear to be blood stains near the bathroom and on Chism's pants.
After Chism was reported missing by his mother on the evening of October 22, police had his cellular phone company "ping" the location of his phone. The phone was found to be in the vicinity of the Hollywood Hits Theater, where investigators learned the teen had purchased a movie ticket and then left.
The affidavit said that, when Chism was spotted by a police officer the next day, he was carrying a knife; a search of his backpack turned up a bloodstained box cutter. Asked where the blood came from, Chism allegedly responded: "The girl." He was also allegedly carrying credit cards and driver's licenses belonging to Ritzer, as well as a pair of woman's underwear.
The armed robbery indictment alleges that Chism robbed Ritzer of credit cards, an iPhone and her underwear.
Police discovered Ritzer's body in a wooded area near the school, covered with leaves and debris in an apparent attempt to conceal it, the court papers said. Her throat was slit.
Court papers detail horrifying final moments of teacher's life
The green recycling bin seen in the surveillance video was found 20 yards from the body. Clothing and other belongings were scattered near the body, along with the blood-soaked gloves Chism appeared to have been wearing in the video. The handwritten "I hate you all" note was folded near her body, according to the documents.
Investigators used the affidavit to secure a warrant to search Chism's home.
Chism's mother, Diana, told investigators that she had recently moved to Massachusetts from Tennessee amid a "stressful divorce" from the teen's father.

Documents filed 12 years ago in a Tennessee court shed light on a troubled relationship. The court papers showed that Chism's father agreed during a separation from his mother to have restricted time with his son, who was then 2, because of "prior physical and emotional abuse as well as alcohol abuse."
Chism's uncle, Terrence Chism Blaine, told CNN that the boy's parents are separated and that the father -- a former military man -- lives in Florida.
On the aggravated rape and armed robbery indictments, Chism was charged as a youthful offender, but prosecutors said they would move to join those charges with the murder case in Superior Court.
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#17
I'll bet that the ruling on the other juvenile cases will affect this case too. It's possible that he may only serve 15 years in prison.

City case tied to ruling on teen killers
Undeveloped brain theory impacts 1988 Gloucester slaying

SALEM — Essex County prosecutors are due to meet today to begin the process of preparing for parole hearings for nine convicted killers whose life sentences without parole were wiped away by the state’s highest court last week.

The nine, who were all teenagers under the age of 18 at the time of the murders, were made eligible for parole in the Supreme Judicial Court’s decision. Two others, convicted since 2007, will also someday get a chance at parole.

The ruling means that decades after families of victims were reassured that their loved ones’ killers would never see the outside of a prison, District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett’s office is facing the prospect of tracking down those relatives to give them the news.

“Massachusetts prides itself on being enlightened on victims’ rights,” a clearly frustrated Blodgett said yesterday. “And, yet, this decision comes out on Christmas Eve day? That’s a pretty tough, bitter pill to swallow for victims’ families who thought that these cases had been put to rest.”

The cases include a 1988 Gloucester slaying in which teenagers Joshua Halbert and John Nichypor —along with a third teen, Kevin Pierce — went to the Gloucester home of 38-year-old David McLane that September with the intention of “rolling” him because of McLane’s sexual orientation. They beat him and slashed his throat.

Going forward, however, the decision also affects sentencing options for Philip Chism, the 14-year-old Danvers boy charged in October with the murder of teacher Colleen Ritzer, 24, of Andover.

The court’s ruling — in the case of Gregory Diatchenko, who was 17 when he stabbed a man as he sat in a car in Boston’s Kenmore Square in 1981 — held that sentences of life without parole failed to take into account a young defendant’s likelihood of being rehabilitated.

It’s a ruling that goes beyond the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Miller vs. Alabama, said Blodgett, who was recently elected to serve as head of the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association.

The Miller decision, like the SJC ruling, pointed to recent research showing that the brains of teenagers are still developing and concluded that it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment to summarily sentence someone to life without parole under those circumstances.

But the Massachusetts court went further, said Blodgett. While the federal ruling required only that juvenile killers get a hearing on the issue of whether they can be rehabilitated, the SJC decision does not require such a proceeding.

Blodgett notes that prior to a change in the law that allowed teens age 14 and over to be tried as adults in murder cases, all of the convicted killers were given “transfer hearings,” where the issue of whether they were suitable candidates for rehabilitation was evaluated by a judge based on testimony from doctors and others.

Blodgett said that while he and other prosecutors do not dispute that teen brains are different from those of adults, that is already factored into decisions on whether to charge a teenager with first-degree murder.

“We’ve always understood that,” said Blodgett. “That’s why district attorneys have robust juvenile and young adult offender diversion programs: to give recognition to the fact that juveniles sometimes make mistakes.

“There are some crimes that are so abhorrent and so heinous a juvenile should be sentenced to life without parole,” said Blodgett. “We don’t charge first-degree murder unless the facts are so heinous and horrible that it warrants a first-degree charge.”

The cases he and his prosecutors will have to reopen and prepare for arguments to the Parole Board — hearings Blodgett has been told will happen “sooner rather than later” — involve crimes that were planned, and involved stalking, atrocity or the infliction of pain.

“We’re not talking about a kid stealing a car, or a drug rip-off,” said Blodgett. “We’re talking about kids committing some of the most heinous crimes you can imagine.”

Yet, even as he acknowledges that teen brains are still developing, Blodgett is concerned that there is no scientific consensus on when a brain is fully developed. Some experts believe the brain is not fully developed until the age of 25, for example, and when the drinking age was returned to 21 in the 1980s, much of the argument for that move was based on the notion that brains are developed by that age.

The SJC also concluded that its decision would be applied retroactively and that the offenders will receive immediate parole eligibility if they have served at least 15 years — even as legislators discuss proposals to create a longer period of time for parole eligibility.

Conceivably, said the district attorney, some killers found guilty of first-degree murder as juveniles could end up doing less time than an adult convicted of second-degree murder, which has long carried parole eligibility at 15 years, or even manslaughter, which carries up to a 20-year sentence.

http://www.gloucestertimes.com/local/x12...en-killers
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#18
ANOTHER CHARGE OF AGGRAVATED RAPE FOR CHISM

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On Friday, an Essex County grand jury charged 15-year-old Philip Chism with an additional count of aggravated rape in the death of teacher Colleen Ritzer, 24.

Prosecutors said that the teen forced Ritzer to have sexual intercourse before he slashed her throat and dumped her body in the woods near Danvers High School on Oct. 22. He was 14 at the time.

In addition to murder and armed robbery, Chism already faced an aggravated rape charge in the teacher's death because he allegedly sexually assaulted her with a stick.

Chism is being charged as an adult.
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#19
What a pig.

I understand he was dealing with some difficult life circumstances, but I'm guessing this teacher went out of her way to make him feel better about himself.

She probably was getting fed up with his shit, or shot down some sort of sexual advance, and at that point he most likely felt betrayal, and took out all of his frustrations with his parents, on her.

Poor girl. No one deserves to die like that (except for child molesters and rapists).

RIP
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#20
Could be, MS.

I don't think Chism has offered up a motive of any kind.

Whatever his reasons, Colleen Ritzer died a brutal death. Chism is a dangerous individual and I hope he's not let free in society again.
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