Danvers Homicide: 14-Year-Old Arrested For Teacher’s Murder

There was a homicide in Danvers, Massachusetts, on Wednesday. The body of 24-year-old teacher, Colleen Ritzer, was discovered in woods near to the high school.

A 14-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of murder after being found wandering around the area. This killing took place only two days after another teacher was gunned down in Sparks, Nevada.

Ritzer’s body was found next to Danvers High School after she failed to return home after classes on Tuesday. Blood was splattered in a second-floor bathroom, according to District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett. He added that there were no other suspects, and he did not specify the cause of her death.

The boy was arraigned Wednesday afternoon in Salem, Massachusetts, charged with murder, and was ordered to be held without bail. Blodgett did not confirm whether the boy is a student at the school and neither could he reveal the boy’s name or his connection to Ritzer, due to his age.

Colleen was known as a dedicated teacher, volunteering to work with special needs students in her second year at the school, while working on her master’s degree,

Ritzer’s aunt, Shirley Martellucci, said the family was in shock.”She always wanted to be a teacher, all her life… It’s just unbelievable that someone would take her life at such a young age.”

Her students were also distressed. One student said that she had been one of the best maths teachers they had ever had. “There’s not words to describe her,” he said. “She’s such an excellent teacher.”

Other students Tweeted what they felt about Colleen Ritzer: “(She) was literally the sweetest, most harmless person ever,” Twitter user samanthawxo posted Wednesday. “She always wanted to help anyone in any way she could. I honestly don’t think I will ever look at the high school the same knowing my favorite teacher died there,”

The district closed all of its schools after the discovery of Ritzer’s body.

Danvers, a town of about 26,000 people, will not forget this particular homicide as it waits for further details to emerge of what exactly happened – and why.