A 14-year-old Massachusetts student has been charged with murder and held without bail for killing his 24-year-old teacher on Tuesday.
Student Philip Chism was arrested Wednesday and charged with the murder of his teacher Colleen Ritzer, who taught math at Danvers High School. According to Reuters, the teen used a box cutter to stab and kill Ritzer before he disposed of her body in the woods behind the school and spent an evening at the movies on Tuesday.
Ritzer had asked Chism to stay after class Tuesday during which time the teen murdered her in a second-floor bathroom. Her body was later found in the woods after she did not return home from school that evening and was reported missing.
Police arrested Chism the next morning as he was walking along Route 1.
Chism was emotionless during the court session in which it was ruled that he would be held on a murder charge with no bail, reports the New York Daily News. The teen’s mother was in tears when it was said that her son would be tried as an adult.
The town of Danvers is now in mourning for Ritzer. Grief counselors were sent to the school on Wednesday to help students and faculty cope with the loss.
“She was a very, very, respected, loved teacher. ... It’s a terrible tragedy for the entire Danvers community,” Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said in a statement, reports boston.com.
Tweets went out from students this week following the murder and arrest, showing their support and love for their fallen teacher and their community.
The new DHS slogan should be "Find something good in every day" in honor of a down to earth math teacher, Colleen Ritzer #DanversStrong
— Colby Sedlier (@colbysedlier24) October 23, 2013
Local police have not yet released a motive or the exact cause of Ritzer’s death.