Wells teen may be youngest charged with murder

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Authorities say the 14-year-old Wells boy charged last month with killing his mother may be the youngest person ever charged in adult court with murder in Vermont.

Christian Taylor is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Francine Morgan who police say was beaten with a flashlight and shot in the face.

Until the 1980s, anyone younger than 16 accused of a killing would have had his or her case heard in juvenile court. That changed after the killing of a 12-year-old girl in Essex in 1980. One of the two boys charged was 15 and could not be tried as an adult.

Lawmakers responded by lowering the age at which someone could be charged as an adult with murder to 10.

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