BOSTON (AP) – A Massachusetts teenager’s confession to police that he killed his math teacher cannot be used in his murder trial, a judge ruled Tuesday even as he allowed a bloody box cutter and other key pieces of evidence to be admitted.
The ruling came in the case of 16-year-old Philip Chism, who has pleaded not guilty to raping and killing 24-year-old Danvers High School teacher Colleen Ritzer on school grounds in October 2013.
Chism’s lawyers had argued that police coerced their client, then 14, into making detailed statements about the killing, despite invoking his right to remain silent. Prosecutors maintained Chism and his mother had never absolutely demanded a lawyer.
Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett, through a spokeswoman, said his office was still reviewing the decision. Calls to Chism’s public defenders seeking comment were not immediately returned.
Ritzer’s family said in a statement it respected the court ruling and was confident that law enforcement “acted responsibly and lawfully” in investigating their daughter’s killing.