Cops: Teens 'Tired' of Messages Plotted to Kill Girl

Utah boys accused of leaving 14-year-old for dead
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 23, 2017 2:46 AM CDT
Cops: Teens 'Tired of Messages' Plotted to Kill Girl
Deserae Turner, the Utah teenager who was shot in the head and left in a ditch.   (Lauren Anderson via AP)

Two 16-year-old boys accused of shooting a 14-year-old girl in the back of the head and leaving her for dead plotted to kill her because one of them was sick of her messages on Snapchat, a court heard this week. A sheriff's deputy testified at a preliminary hearing for one of the boys accused of trying to kill Deserae Turner in a small Utah town that the teen said the plot started as a joke, but his friend told him it "would be pretty easy to get rid of her," People reports. The deputy testified that before the attack, one boy texted, "Let’s get this done, bro," to his friend, who responded: "Yeah man, hold on. Are we clear?" Prosecutors want both boys to be tried as adults for attempted murder, KUTV reports.

Deserae has been in the hospital since Feb. 16, when searchers in Smithfield found her in the dry canal bed she was allegedly lured to by the boys, who are also accused of stealing $55 from the girl's purse and destroying her cellphone. In a March 10 video shown in court, Deserae said she couldn't recall much, but she remembered being in a muddy canal with the boys, the Deseret News reports. Police say she was shocked to discover her supposed friends allegedly tried to kill her. The preliminary hearing for the boy accused of pulling the trigger was held on Tuesday and the second boy's was on Wednesday, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. The judge ruled for both cases to move forward and will decide later on whether to move the cases to adult court. (More attempted murder stories.)

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