ORANGE COUNTY, N.C — A 17-year-old juvenile has been charged after two teens were found shot dead on Sunday.
The bodies of Lyric Woods, 14, and Devin Clark, 18, were found by men riding four-wheelers in the woods in western Orange County on Sunday. Both victims had what appeared to be gunshot wounds, according to Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood.
Juvenile charged with murder in deaths of 2 teens in Orange County, sheriff says https://t.co/LivBtypnRH pic.twitter.com/oyHaVWYQMx
— CBS 17 (@WNCN) September 20, 2022
According to The Associated Press, a juvenile petition has been filed against an unidentified 17-year-old for two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Woods and Clark. Blackwood said that the suspect was not yet in custody on Tuesday afternoon.
“We are not resting until he is in our custody in Orange County,” Blackwood said. “Until then, our heads are down, and we are working toward that end.”
Family members had reported Lyric missing on Saturday, and Clark had last been seen around 11 p.m. on Friday, according to WNCN.
In a media release sent on Tuesday, Blackwood described the purpose of a juvenile petition against the 17-year-old.
“Beginning December 1, 2019, 16- and 17-year-old individuals who commit crimes in North Carolina are no longer charged automatically in the adult criminal justice system. If there is a notice of indictment or the court finds probable cause for a Class A-G felony committed by a 16 or 17-year-old, a district court judge shall transfer the case to superior court. First-degree murder is a Class A felony,” Blackwood said in his Tuesday media release.
Juvenile Petition Filed in Orange County Homicide Casehttps://t.co/SKGUhJQ2CT
— Orange Co Sheriff NC (@OCNCSheriff) September 20, 2022
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