Police: Pa. Teen Killed Classmate, Then Took Selfie With Victim

A Pennsylvania teenager killed a classmate and uploaded a selfie with the victim to the social-media app Snapchat, police said.

Maxwell Marion Morton, 16, of Jeannette is charged with first-degree murder, homicide and possession of a firearm by a minor, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review said.

Morton is accused of shooting classmate Ryan Mangan, also 16, in the face on Wednesday, Feb. 4, The Washington Post said. Morton then uploaded a selfie with Mangan’s body to Snapchat, the Post said.

Both students were juniors at Jeannette High School in Westmoreland County, The Tribune-Review said.

On Snapchat, “Snaps can be viewed for up to 10 seconds,” the company says. But the friend to whom Morton sent the photo saved it, and showed it to his mother, Fox News said.

““I’ve never seen it before,” Westmoreland County District Attorney John Peck told The Tribune-Review, “but it was a key piece of evidence that led investigators to the defendant.”

Morton also texted that friend saying, ”Ryan was not the last one,” KDKA reported.

When police confronted Morton, he confessed to killing Mangan, The Tribune-Review said. A 9mm handgun was found in Morton’s home, and police are awaiting ballistics results to match it to the one used to kill Mangan.

Morton is being held without bail in the Westmoreland County Juvenile Detention Center, though authorities say he will be tried as an adult. A preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 19.

__________________

Check out these other Patch stories:

• Kerns Loses Law License
• Three Homes Burglarized Overnight in Radnor
• Bryn Mawr Doctor Illegally Distributed Oxycodone, FBI Says
• East Pikeland Honors Police Officer of the Year
• Beware of Scammers, Montco Sheriff’s Office Says
• Police: Burglary Attempt in Berwyn
• With No Saturday Winner, Powerball Jackpot Hits $450M