At The Hands of The Student: The Murder of Colleen Ritzer

When Phillip Chism, 14, doesn't come home from school, his mother calls the police to report him missing.

As the town begins to look for the 9th grader, word spreads around town that a 24-year-old teacher, Colleen Ritzer, is also missing. Chism is found walking along a road just after midnight. After a quick search of his backpack,  he is arrested.

Later in the morning, Colleen Ritzer's body is found on school grounds, sexually positioned with a folded note next to her body that says, "I hate you all."

Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack break down the story of the student from Tennessee and the horrifying final moments in the life of Colleen Ritzer.

Transcription Highlights 

00:01:00 Introduction of location, suspect, and victim 

00:02:53 Suspect is student, 14, victim is a teacher 

00:04:04 Discussion of suspect family 

00:08:22 Talk about motive and possible “trigger” 

00:11:49 Discussion of why victim went to public bathroom 

00:15:28 Discussion of witness and surveillance video 

00:19:07 Talk about investigation, pinging cell phones 

00:21:47 Discussion of suspect on surveillance video  

00:27:25 Talk about body being covered  

00:30:36 Breaking down the evidence 

00:34:35 Discussion of sentence 

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