14-Year-Old Boy Charged With Murder in Half-Sister’s Hanging Death
- Posted on May 12, 2012 at 7:41am by
Madeleine Morgenstern
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Katelynn Arnold. (Image source: Birmingham News)
A 14-year-old Alabama boy has been charged with murder in the death of his half-sister, after the 9-year-old was found hanging from a tree.
Katelynn Arnold’s aunt found the girl hanging from a tree near their home Thursday night, the Birmingham News reported. Katelynn and her half-brother both lived with their aunt and uncle, their foster parents, in the 1,900-person town of Ragland.
St. Clair County Sheriff Terry Surles told the newspaper the accused boy, who has not been named, admitted to killing Katelynn by hanging her with a rope. She had apparently been riding her bicycle when her half brother called her over near a tree.
The boy reportedly gave investigators a motive for the killing but Surles did not release it.
The tree where neighbors said Katelynn Arnold was found hanging. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)
The little girl’s aunt did not realize she was missing until 7 p.m., at which point she drove around looking for her for 45 minutes before finding her. Surles said a cotton rope was tied around her neck but not in a hangman’s noose.
The Birmingham News reported the boy went to bed after Katelynn was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead. He was arrested later that night around 2 a.m.
“She never got a chance to grow up. Her life was taken away,” neighbor Ricky Campbell told the Birmingham News.
Campbell, who told WBRC-TV his granddaughter was Katelynn’s best friend, said he never saw any real signs of trouble from the boy.
“He’d run off and do crazy things, but I never believed he’d do something like that. It’s a bad situation,” he said.
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Comments (71)
Small World
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:22amTragic. Break down of family, religion.
Report Post »tommyg524
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 2:29pm10 4 that is correct sir.
Report Post »Smokey_Bojangles
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 5:01pmSenator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York would call it a Mother’s day Gift.
Report Post »Arfmoogle
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 5:24pmExactly. When I lived in the Oakland, CA area I observed that when the family breaks down, civilization breaks down. When I told that to some of my friends, it was too strong of a medicine for them, and they told me that what I said was ridiculous.
Then I would simply tell them, “Come with me to ‘the flats (a notoriously bad section of Oakland)’ around 4pm, and we’ll go for a walk.”
Not surprisingly, not a single one of them ever took me up on my offer. They might have been stupid, but they weren’t crazy.
The Christian Church at large has failed us miserably in all of this. Many churches no longer preach the Word of God, if they ever did. And failing to hold believers accountable to what scripture actually says, they became mere social gathering places, more interested in getting people to come and put money in the plate. They will try anything to get people to show up, short of preaching the gospel. And that, my friends, will bring this nation to its knees faster than anything. As a nation we must come back to God.
Jeremiah 24:7 And I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Jehovah: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God; for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
Report Post »johnjamison
Posted on May 14, 2012 at 2:00pmI can’t imagine the anger and saddens that the family must be feeling. I only hope God will help them through this moment of sorrow.
Report Post »chips1
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:14amEveryday we get stories like this. The liberals promote this type story because it numbs the publics views about death. Their goals are to make it the norm. Abortions, murders and Obamacare prove the point. Hand on people. It’s BIG and coming faster than your mind can absorb it.
Report Post »Suzanne D
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 1:14pmThis is the only place I’ve seen this story … and I would hardly call this a site promoting the liberal agenda.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 4:34pmIn the Good Ole Days… everyone went to Church… and things seemed calm,,, but even Billy the Kid started killing at 17.
Report Post »Melika
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:06amTo everyone who is blaming a break-down in society, parenting issues, etc. I have only one thing to say to you: some people are born evil. I know, no one ever wants to believe that a child is “evil”. We in America still have the can-do spirit and we think if we can just find out the “problem” we can fix it. Unfortunately, there are people, for whatever reason, are born without the mental capacity for a conscious. There is NOTHING you can do to fix it. There are plenty of cases of children murdering other children because they felt like it (at least as young as 5), and no matter what drugs or counseling is provided, they never become normal. Once a child hits 9 years old, their brain is developed enough to understand morality and mortality. If a child has no morality or conscious by this age, they are unlikely to attain it. Please don’t confuse learned bad behavior with no conscious, I’m talking two different things. It’s quite possible this kid is just plain evil (mentally disturbed, no conscious, whatever you want to call it) through no one’s fault. In which case, go ahead with years of counseling if it makes you feel better, but at some point he should be killed, or at the least never allowed to procreate and pass on the bad genes that caused it.
You can all start quoting the Bible and whining at me now and explaining how no child is born bad, just with Original Sin.
Report Post »shimauma
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:54amYou’re right that people can be born “evil” but the fact is we are ALL born with a sinful nature, corrupted from the start. It’s how we chose to act on that sinful nature that shapes our lives. This boy( “He’d run off and do crazy things, but I never believed he’d do something like that. It’s a bad situation,” he said.” ) was allowed to run rampant, undisciplined; is it any wonder he allowed his sinful nature to dictate his behavior. People need to be held accountable, and sadly it is too late for his little sister.
Report Post »American Mensch
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 12:18pmYou are right. There is no cure for a sociopath, and no way to diagnose this particular anomaly. There are cases where kids that kill have grown up in a healthy, functional household. They had no abuse or deprivations in their upbringing, but they were completely without emotions or empathy toward other people or animals. They seem to have been born completely devoid of a conscience. I wish this boy’s pathology had been recognized and acted on before this horrible crime could have happened, but sociopaths can be very good at hiding their true nature with charm and deceit. How tragic for this little girl.
Report Post »Gumbercules
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 1:23pmI refuse to read the rest of your comments. If you are so ignorant to say that some are born evil, then you are agreeing with liberals on so many fronts. There is as much proof that a baby is born ‘evil’ as there is a baby being born ‘gay’.
More than 90% of babies in the womb detected with down syndrome are aborted. If it were possible to detect an ‘evil’ fetus, 100% of babies in the womb who are ‘evil’ would be aborted and we would live in a sin-free world. In fact, none of us would be allowed to live because we all are ‘evil’ on some level.
You’re statements completely back up your ignorance and stupidity. . .
Report Post »tommyg524
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 2:16pmI’m inclined to agree, particularly because I at age 54, have gone from a society who didnt lock their doors, I could play outside past dusk, never having been accosted or anything else, to a society now all but completely ruined by all things freedom of expression..et al. I have come across evil people, and people who i thought i knew pretty well, who would say things like …”Yeah man, I’d like to see a body after it was hit by a car….” or any number of idiotic mindless valueless shallow things like that….leading me to believe that yes, indeed some people are either just born evil, OR….and I suspect in MANY cases, this soert of thing is passed down in cycles, by parents b4 them, of whom ALSO thought the same things…all I know is, I dont trust ANYONE anymore,and I watch my kids very closely and make my opinions known all the time, and my kids are now 18 and 28. Oh, and they both have their heads screwed on right, know the value of life, are sane rational professionals/or student, and so on. In other words, they wshould think about moving to a decent upstanding country at some point in their lives instead of staying in this purgatory of sin and profitable death known as the usa..
Report Post »kindling
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 2:18pmI too believe kids are born with attitude in one direction or the other. Some kids are just going to be bad and others remain good. In one family the parenting in the same and the kids go both directions. Of course things happen to both types but you don’t see one that is bad to the bone turning good but you can see good ones crack and go bad. But mostly I see that kids take challenges differently from a very young age and I can see where they are going to go. That does not mean we stop trying to teach the children that show no empathy to care, it is just that they just never learn. It is just not there.
Report Post »ICanComment
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 6:47pmWe’re ALL born evil. Fair warning: I’m about to quote the Bible. If you (any reader) don’t like it, don’t read it.
Romans 3:23 – For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Isaiah 53:6 – All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Jeremiah 17:9 – The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
I can attest to the last one, personally.
I’m not pontificating – I’m fully aware of my own sin and am reminded daily. I mourn it all the time and long for the day when these burdens will be gone.
Is the kid a sociopath? Maybe. Maybe it was an accident. Who knows? Sure, some folks have a particular propensity to commit the worst deeds imaginable. But for grace, there go I. My point is that we’re all capable of unspeakable things.
It’s awful all the same. Poor girl – makes me so sad. God rest her soul and may God bless the poor family. I don’t even want to think about what this would do to a family. I mean no disrespect to anyone. If you don’t agree with my worldview, I respect that.
Report Post »Grace1798
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:25amOh Dear God, save us!
Report Post »ICanComment
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 6:47pm@Grace
Amen. God have mercy on us horrible sinners.
Report Post »nadathing
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:24amLiving with an aunt and uncle. What happened to mom and dad?
Report Post »abbygirl1994
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:41amWhat normally happens drugs, abuse or death of parents! What does it matter, a liitle girl is dead because her step brother killed her! Sad! I pray for the family!
Report Post »burnbabylon
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:11amDoes “Lord of the Flies” come to mind for anyone?
Report Post »SERUM
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:59am“He’d run off and do crazy things,…”
Report Post »Yeah, these“things”are usually the tell tales’ signs of demise of many. Could some of these“things” been a killing of a dog or cat.
The mother has probably has connected the dots by now…
hi
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:52amI bet he was on drugs, even ADD meds. They are not safe.
Report Post »starman70
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:19amFar too many kids are put on ADD drugs at the request of school authorities. I have seen kids, normally over active but having vibrant personalities, become almost zombies while on those drugs.
The drugs are a easy means for parents and school authorities to avoid the responsibility of discipline. However, the real effect of those drugs are not fully understood.
This is a tragic story. I am heartbroken for every parent involved.
Report Post »tommyg524
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 2:32pmthat is a BIG 10-4, pharmas and all things portrayed by the liberal media on every commercial you see …run this ****-try. that is for sure.
Report Post »biffo
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:42amShe wasn’t missed until 7pm….. Poor neglected child.
Report Post »N37BU6
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 12:20pmWhat if he hanged her at 6:45? It doesn’t say how long she was missing for. And the neighbor vouched for the guardians.
Report Post »Suzanne D
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 1:21pmThis happened in rural Alabama. In the South, it’s common to turn the kids outside to play for hours, with the presumption that it’s safe. That doesn’t mean she was neglected. Don’t be so quick to judge!
Report Post »RougeFastFingers
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:29amJust a horrible story, one life snuffed out, another over befoe it really started.
Report Post »momrules
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:22amIn 1998 eight y/o Robert Mays of Splendora, Texas was tied to a tree and set on fire by then 13 y/o Don Wilburn Collins. Shortly before his death in 2011 from results of his burns Robert explained why Collins set him on fire. Collins had raped Robert and was afraid Robert would tell on him.
Robert is dead now and Collins is in a Texas prison for an unrelated sexual assault. Robert’s
mother is trying to get authorities to reopen the case regarding her son with murder charges against Collins.
Remember, Collins was only 13 when this happened. We don’t know why the boy in Alabama killed his sister but sometime kids are just evil.
Report Post »Mark0331
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:45am@MOMRULES…..That is a horrific story….I often wonder, a child is pretty much ‘in his own mind’ at 13…..like an adult….I see so many violent crimes committed up here (NJ/NY) by juvenile offenders…14–17…I am talking murder, rape, assault. etc…I agree with you, some ‘children’ have evil inside them and they simply do not care…Very sad and scary to see….Cold as Ice, make most adults walk the other way.
Report Post »ADNIL
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:52amAdolescent boys molest their younger sisters. It is a frequent occurrance. Parents, DO NOT allow older male siblings to “baby-sit“ or ”look after” their younger sisters!!! And be sure your bedroom is between theirs, not upstairs, or on the other side of the house from theirs. AND if the younger girl starts sleeping out side of your bedroom door on the floor with her blanket and pillow, ASK QUESTIONS!
Report Post »tommyg524
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 2:34pmthere see…this sort of thing would rarely happen in 67,68′ when I was a boy in the south. why? BECAUSE there was ONE parent at home watching over us all th time. Gettin the picture yet?
Report Post »Magyar
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:21amInundated on a daily basis with violence, murder, brutality, rape, mugging, injustice and worse all at their finger tips on TV, the internet, the radio, YouTube, Facebook–kids have become anesthetised from reality. It’s what happens in an ungodly existence– they just don’t care. Where were the parents?
Report Post »TWO BITS
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:14amThis is a sad story. Katelynn’s picture is sweet and innocent. If the 14 year old boy gave the investigators a motive, this would not seem to be an accident.
Report Post »g.prunty
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:10amnakedbootleg…you are a nut this/ unsupervised like you know the people/ as if you can watch them 24 and 7 this is what happens when you have a breakdown in society show killing over and over on t.v. and video games you take the realism out of a child’s mind.this country has went downhill ever since they took prayer out of school and reversed the blue law.
Report Post »ShyMan
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:06amTragedy.
Report Post »Detroit paperboy
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:59amIt’s like a Steven king story, scarey………
Report Post »shimauma
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:59amnot really; in a stephen king story, the boy would be mentally retarded, the girl would be some offspring of a demonic entity and the miltary probably put drugs in the water/air to make them violent.
Report Post »nakedbootleg
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:52amThis is what happens when kids spend too much time unsupervised. Some adult in this household has some explaining to do.
Report Post »gerty
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:51amSorry put my commend on the wrong post.
Report Post »Mil-Dot
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:42amThere is more to this story folks. Half brother? 2 different fathers, Alabama. I smell another race based crime not being reported as such. I could be wrong though.
Report Post »AU Patriot
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:17amI am in Alabama and race has not been mentioned. I don’t think this is a racial issue. It’s so sad. Nobody is saying much about the brother. I don’t understand how someone could do that especially to your sister. I’m praying for the family. A neighbor on the news said they are still in shock.
Report Post »RJJinGadsden
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:37amI live about thirty miles from Ragland and I can guarantee you that race has nothing to do with this case. You are way off on that possible assumption. As AU PATRIOT has pointed out, there is very little mention of the brother so far. I expect to hear more about this in the local news over the next few days. As somebody else mentioned here, this has been like a Stephen King novel.
Report Post »MIL-DOT, oh yeah, thanks for continuing that idiotic southern stereotype that Hollywood and the MSM love to promote. I’ve read and agreed with so many of your previous posts here, but that little quip sounded more of what I would expect from ENCINOM(AN), JZS, MONICNE, and such. You can and have done much better.
mikefromaltoona
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:40amWhat a terrible story to read on a beautiful Saturday morning. I think I’ll listen to some Julie Miller.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:39amWhat makes young kids snap like that? Very sad.
Report Post »ADNIL
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:15amThey don’t “snap” just like that. There were signs, but no one was paying attention. 14 year olds are pretty savy these days. They know way too much. It is as if their “childhoods” have been stolen. They certainly know basic right from wrong. AND they know they are minors who will probably not be held accountable and are somewhat above the law, because of their tender years, and can get away with a lot of stuff.
When I was a kid a LOOOOONG time ago, my “junenile delinquent” friends used to say stuff like….” I’m 15 so I know I can get away with it. They’ll just call my parents to come and get me. But when I am 16 next year, I’ll have to stop.” They were referring to such things as shoplifting and breaking and entering, theft. That sort of thing. So they knew what they were doing.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 11:20amShop lifting is a far cry from hanging your sister.
Report Post »Suzanne D
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 1:32pm@ Adnil: there were not necessarily signs that this boy was troubled. We have extensive data from serial killers and psychopaths and many of them began by torturing/killing small animals when they were young; most were never discovered. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE a psychopath’s ability to keep his or her inner thoughts a secret.
Report Post »klevalt
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:35amKids these days simply don’t know the reality of death… the permant nature of it. They are not taught that the TV, video game or movie isn’t real. Recently in my neighborhood, a little 10 year old committed suicide…. Never any indication of any kind of mental disturbances…. I just think he didn’t know how final his act would be.
God bless this little girl and her auntie. A very sad day indeed.
Report Post »OldVietVet
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:30amNo reasonable comment is possible–more information please! God help these people deal with this tragedy! Was it a “game” gone wrong?–Why arrest a 14 yo without investigating first?
Report Post »gerty
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:49amNo he does not need to be “PUT DOWN”, I don’t think he realized what he was doing. He was probably just playing and decided to use her instead of himself because he wasn’t sure if it would hurt. He probably just got scared and went to hide in his bed. This is so sad to everyone involved even the little boy.
Report Post »THXll38
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:22amThis pains me to say this, but the kid needs to be put down, or used for science. If he can do this sick crap and then go to bed after, he is indeed on his way to become part of the problem, not the solution — another serial killer in the making.
Report Post »gerty
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:54amNo this boy does not need to be “PUT DOWN” as you say it. Probably just playing around and it went horribly wrong. He went to bed to hide because he was scared and that is what kids do when they are scared, they hide. I feel bad for all that was involved including the boy.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:08amReally? So you think he should be “put down” to examine his brain so we can find out how he ticks? Are you kidding?
This is a society problem of broken families due to the Govenment meddling with food stamps, abortions breaking up the family units by promoting the gay agenda and even the Police State that brings use useless violence instead of peace.. These kids are educated in a school that could care less about loving them, but more on controlling them..You can lay this all at the feet of Godless liberal POLITICIANS and “compassionate” thoughts of a Utopian society…In other words…BIG GOVERNMENT CONTROL caused all of this….
This is only going to escalate as we are robbed of freedoms and liberties. It is mans way of rebellion to the confiscation of his life. It will even effect small boys…
Go ahead and take out his brain and look at it. First, go look at your sorry a@@ in the mirror.
Report Post »THXll38
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:51amHe felt bad so he went to hide in his bed. Okay. We will just evaluate him, put him in juvy, and he will grow up to be a model citizen. He will be sorry for what he did and all will be well in the world.
Baddoggy . . . sometimes you fall of the deep end and here is one example. There are a lot of broken families and educated people via the public school system. being gay, being raised by lezbos, cousins, uncles/aunts etc. does not promote this type of action. It is clear that the kid is mentality unstable and needs to be treated as an adult. You sound like a liberal blaming everything other than the root cause. The root cause seems to be premeditated and as such be treated so. We will allow the law and I will presume he is innocent until proven guilty. That said, I retract my first post and he should be tried and if convicted, be the burden of tax payers, or go on death row when he turns 18.
Report Post »RedDirtTexas
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 9:56am@ BADDOGGY Completely agree! If we don‘t raise ’em right, what else can we expect?
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:31amMy parents and grandparents raised me, not the Government. I turned out to be a model citizen…well except when I fight against liberal turds…
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 8:17amGod rest her soul, to die in such a manner and so young at that. Her life is done here on earth, may a life of eternal joy with the father be her reward.
Report Post »GeorgieJo
Posted on May 12, 2012 at 10:34amYES God rest her soul.
Report Post »How horribly sad.