Revealed: Boy, 14, 'hid out in high school before slashing teacher, 24, to death with box cutter stolen from art class'
- Math teacher Colleen Ritzer found dead on Wednesday morning after she was reported missing when she didn't come home from school
- Thousands from the small town of Danvers, Massachusetts held a candle-lit vigil for the teacher on Wednesday night where she was remembered as a 'brilliant ray of light'
- Philip Chism, 14, one of her students, charged with her murder today
- Police who went in search of Miss Ritzer found school bathroom covered in blood
- Teen was picked up by police walking along a highway at 12.30am after being last seen at a movie theater
By Will Payne In Danvers, Massachusetts and Michael Zennie
|
A teenager, charged with murder after his math teacher was found slashed to death with a box cutter, had hid out in the school with the weapon he stole from an art class, sources claimed tonight.
The body of Colleen Ritzer, 24, was found in woods behind Danvers High School on Wednesday morning after she was allegedly killed by 14-year-old student Philip Chism.
The small Massachusetts town paid tribute to the slain teacher on Wednesday night with hundreds of residents holding a candle-light vigil at the school where she died. Many students dressed in her favorite color pink and described her as a 'brilliant ray of light'.
Scroll down for video
Members of the Danvers High School community hold a candlelight vigil on Wednesday for math teacher Colleen Ritzer, 24, who was murdered at Danvers High School on Tuesday night
another at a makeshift memorial for teacher Colleen Ritzer outside the high school where she taught in Danvers, Massachusetts
A moment's silence was held for Miss Ritzer on Wednesday night before the start of the MLB baseball World Series at Fenway Park in Boston
The community is desperately trying to understand what could have motivated such a senseless and brutal act.
Some details from Tuesday night's tragic events have started to emerge with many students saying that the killer hid inside the school after class before killing Miss Ritzer.
It is believed that he used a craft knife stolen from an art classroom to attack the math teacher after forcing her into a second-floor bathroom.
One boy told how dedicated Miss Ritzer, who had been a teaching assistant up until 12 months ago, had only stayed late in school because she wanted to mark quizzes she had given out to her students that day.
The student said: 'She was such a great teacher and she worked really hard. She had set some math quizzes that day and I guess she had stayed late to mark them.
'Apparently the boy hid in school after class, he didn't go home at all. Then I heard he forced her into the bathroom and attacked her with a knife from the art room.
'People are saying he then dragged her down the stairs and got rid of her body in a recycling bin. No one has any idea why he did it. It is a tragedy.'
Colleen Ritzer, 24, was found dead behind Danvers High School on Wednesday morning after her family called police when she didn't come home
Horrific: Investigators can be seen here carrying Colleen Ritzer's body from the woods where it was discovered early Wednesday
Charged: Philip Chism, 14, appeared in court on Wednesday afternoon. He did not speak during his appearance
Other students, who played soccer with accused 14-year-old Chism, said that he was a really nice boy but incredibly shy and hard to get to know.
One
said: 'He was nice, but really quiet. No one really knew him that well.
Apparently when he was arrested he was unresponsive and barely said
anything at all.
'Nothing like this has ever happened in Danvers before. No one can believe what is going on.'
Students told WCVB that Miss Ritzer was a brilliant ray of light who was dedicated to her students.
Danvers Superintendent Lisa Dana told the crowd: 'We will work together to insure that Miss Ritzer's legacy is defined not by one day or one person but by the many lives that she impacted.'
Police
sources earlier revealed that Chism was seen on surveillance footage
dragging a recycling bin with Miss Ritzer's body through the halls of
the high school and dumping her remains in the woods near campus.
Danvers High School students prepare to launch sky lanterns during a candlelight vigil to mourn the death of Colleen Ritzer
A girl lights a candle at a makeshift memorial for teacher Colleen Ritzer outside the high school where she taught in Danvers and was killed on Tuesday
A member of Danvers Police radios fellow officers as attendees disperse at the end of the candlelight vigil
Parents and Danvers High School students held a candlelight vigil to mourn the death of Colleen Ritzer
In a bizarre twist, WCVB-TV
today reported that after the gruesome killing, Chism walked to
Hollywood Hits theaters in Danvers and watched Woody Allen's latest film
Blue Jasmine - a movie about a middle-aged woman's mental breakdown.
Miss Ritzer's phone was later found near the movie theater.
Beloved
math teacher Miss Ritzer, 24, was reported missing by her family when
she didn't come home from school on Tuesday night. When police went to
search the school, they found a bathroom covered in blood.
Students flooded social media with an outpouring of grief over the murder, describing the teacher as dedicated and bright.
Chism appeared in court on Wednesday afternoon where he was charged as an adult in Miss Ritzer's murder.
Chism's mother hides her face as she exits the courthouse in Salem, Massachusetts, following her son's arraignment on Wednesday
The boy's attorney entered a plea of not guilty and requested a mental health evaluation for the boy and suggested she would argue that he was not mentally competent to stand trial. He was held without bail following the arraignment in Salem District Court.
His family was in the courtroom during his arraignment and a woman believed to be his mother could be seen sobbing in the gallery.
Arrest records say Chism is 6'2 and is 140 pounds. A police report indicated that he and Miss Ritzer knew each other from school and that she had taught the 14-year-old.
WBZ-TV reported that the teenager is from Tennessee and had recently moved to Danvers.
The Boston Globe reports that he appeared to have made friends in his short time in Danvers and had joined that school's soccer team.
Administrators shut down all schools in the district on Wednesday as the murder investigation continued and students struggled to cope with the horrifying news.
The investigation began on Tuesday night after Chism's parents called police when he didn't return home from school.
A makeshift memorial was set up infont of Danvers High School on Tuesday in the wake of the brutal killing of beloved high school teacher Colleen Ritzer
An exterior view of Philip Chism's family home in Andover, Massachusetts where he had reportedly recently moved with his family
Dedicated: Officials said Miss Ritzer, 24, was a respected and well-liked teacher who was dedicated to her students
The teacher's body was discovered in the woods behind the school early on Wednesday after the teenage suspect was picked up by police
Chism wore a jail jumpsuit as he appeared in court. He just moved to Danvers a few weeks ago
'A PORTRAIT OF LIFE FALLING APART': WOODY ALLEN'S LATEST FILM BLUE JASMINE
According to a report from WCVB-TV, Danvers murder suspect Philip Chism allegedly killed his death then went to see 'Blue Jasmine' at the local movie theater.
Woody Allen's newest hit film seems a strange choice for a 14-year-old boy - murder allegations notwithstanding.
'Blue Jasmine' - rated PG-13 - stars Cate Blanchett as a middle-aged woman who falls from the height of society into homelessness after she loses all her money when her husband goes to prison for fraud.
Critics have rated it one of Allen's best pictures in years.
'Jasmine resembles one of those '50s wives -- widowed or dumped -- who find themselves with nary a skill to survive, or at least not in the manner they'd grown accustomed,' praised the Denver Post.
The Seattle Times called it, 'A wrenching portrait of a woman whose life has fallen apart.'
Danvers police took to social media to help search for the boy. He was last seen at a movie theater about 6.30pm on Tuesday.
About
11.30pm, Miss Ritzer's family reported her missing.
They said she
had not returned home from school and was not answering her phone.
Officers then went to the school, where they found a second-floor bathroom covered in blood.
Police in neighboring Topsfield picked up the missing teen about 12.30am on Wednesday after they discovered him walking along a highway.
Chism was taken to detectives in Danvers where he allegedly led police to the teacher's body behind the school.
A police source told ABC News that surveillance video from the high school, which is rigged with 130 cameras, shows Chism dragging a recycling bin with Miss Ritzer's body through the halls and out the door of the school.
A source told WCVB that after the killing, Chism went to the movies where he saw Blue Jasmine, which stars Cate Blanchett as a fallen socialite who spirals into homelessness after she loses her money. The film is directed by Woody Allen.
Ritzer taught math at Danvers High School. Her Twitter feed, which she used to communicate lessons to her students said: 'Math teacher often too excited about the topics I'm teaching.'
'She was a very, very, respected, loved teacher. It’s a terrible tragedy for the entire Danvers community,' Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said.
A police officer stands guard near the entrance to Danvers High School, Massachusetts on Tuesday evening
Distraction? Police sources told WCVB-TV that the suspect went to see Blue Jasmine, Woody Allen's newest film, after the horrific killing
Missing: Philip Chism was reported missing on Tuesday night when he didn't come home from school. Police found him walking along a road about 12.30am on Wednesday
Ritzer graduated with high honors and was attending graduate school. Her students say she was dedcated
Colleen Ritzer, from Andover, Massachusetts, was reported missing about 12.30am when she didn't return home from school and wasn't answering her phone
She lived with her mother and father in nearby Andover. Her family issued a statement saying: 'At this time we are mourning the tragic death of our amazing daughter and sister.
'Everyone that knew and loved Colleen knew of her passion, her teaching and how she mentored each and every one of her students.'
Chris Weimert, 17, was a student in
Ritzer’s geometry class last year. He said she had taught at the school
for two years and was a warm, welcoming person who would stand outside
her classroom and say hello to students she didn’t teach.
'She was the nicest teacher anyone could ever have. She always had a warm smile on her face,' he said.
Weimert said the suspect, who he knew from seeing him around school, 'seemed like a good kid'. He said, 'It really threw the whole town of Danvers a curve ball.'
Students immediately tweeted tributes to their teacher.
Ritzer lived with her parents in the same town where she grew up
Outpouring: Students took to Twitter to express their sadness at the murder of their beloved teacher
'The sign on ms ritzer's white board that said "You matter." Made my day, everyday. This is so surreal #RIP,' one student tweeted.
'There was no teacher like Ms. Ritzer, she was a role model, and nothing but positive. Rest easy, you will never be forgotten,' student Emily McPherson wrote.
Ritzer was in her second year as a teacher at Danvers High School. She was also studying for a masters degree at Salem State University.
No motive has been given in the murder.
Following the horrifying discovery, administrators shut down all schools in Danvers, a quiet Boston suburb with a population of 26,000.
Miss Ritzer is the second math teacher killed at school by a student this week. Michael Landsberry, who taught eighth grade math, was gunned down Monday by a 12-year-old student after he tried to stop a shooting rampage at Sparks Middle School in Nevada.
- Teen Charged In Murder Of Danvers High School Teacher - CBS Boston
- Teen accused of killing teacher, 24, in Danvers - The Boston Globe
- ABC News: Teen Charged in Stabbing Death of High School Teacher
- WCVB-TV: Danvers student, 14, charged in death of math teacher
- Hundreds mourn slain Danvers teacher Colleen Ritzer
-
Royals arrive for Christening of George at St James's Palace
-
Obama cares: Pres grabs fainting woman
-
News staffer faceplants live on air
-
Dog determined to make friends with boy with Down syndrome
-
CCTV: FIVE men jump American student in Brick Lane
-
Student Phillip Chism in court over teacher murder
-
Is this the noisy fish keeping Southampton residents awake?
-
911 Call: Shot fired after AZ wife, 63, found with 22-yr-old...
-
14-year-old charged over teacher murder
-
MSNBC's perfect reaction to Kimye engagement
-
False widow spider bites: What you need to know
-
Male NY Jets fan punches woman in the face
-
Revealed: Boy, 14, 'hid out in high school before slashing...
-
HRH Grumps - but by George, he's gorgeous! Not a tear, not a...
-
The house that spite built: Iconic property 'built by...
-
Saudi Arabia severs diplomatic ties with US over response to...
-
Baby girls switched at birth reunited with their mothers...
-
Oops! University teaching assistant accidentally emails...
-
Where in the U.S. should you live? Graphic shows which state...
-
31 years ago it was all so different: How George's...
-
The terrible truth about Gaddafi's harem: How Libyan...
-
Are you cleverer than an undergraduate? Professor releases...
-
Maria 'was groomed to be a child bride': Police claim girl...
-
'His only crime was being a young black guy buying a $300...
Comments (386)
Share what you think
The comments below have been moderated in advance.
How does a innocent child born into the world become a mentally unstable person. Well Bad genes, bad parents, bad schooling and bad influences. We need to figure out how to promote the innocent withut corrupting its mind. We need to introduce meditation into our lives so that people can give their minds a rest so that it can restore the purity and the innocence otherwise it is cgoing to keep delving in that which is destabilising it.
Um...why was a teacher going to a movie with a student? Don't they have professional codes of conduct in the States?
Was not 'big news' here due to the fact no gun was used. How unfortunate and sad. This kind of crime is what the death penalty is for. Please use it.
Everything plays a role here. Parenting, exposure to violence (TV), mental health etc. Who needs terrorism when society is tearing itself apart with such atrocious and savage acts?
The pre-frontal lobes of the brain, which gives humans the ability to reason, determine right from wrong, and gauges consequences is not fully developed (in non-incapacitated people) until the age of 20 to 25. So how can a 14 year old be held liable as an adult. You cannot vote until you are 18, cannot sign a contract until 21, cannot join the military until 18, cannot marry (without parental permission) until 18...why..because their maturity level is not that of an adult. But the law allows such persons to be tried as an adult. Unreasonable and, in my opinion, cruel and unusual.
Evil people will find whatever tools are available to carry out evil deeds. This is a clear example why gun control isn't the true issue in America or the world for that matter involving heinous crimes; it's about the chaos which is under the radar mental health disorders and the ill equipped school system early warning systems we are neglecting.
It is so sad when child is killing another very very young person almost a child herself. Very disturbing. We are exposed to such an Evil every day in this New Bad World....why? the rhetorical question unfortunately... How she can rest in Peace? So young to be murdered in such a brutal way...sad.... Let us pray for HER.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Robert Walker, Fairfax, 7 hours ago
This is very disturbing and bizarre.....what 14-year-old boy wants to see Woody Allen movies?