A 14-year-old is now in secure custody, facing first-degree murder charges for the death of 15-year-old Aryion "AJ" Clendenning in Durham. The teenager is alleged to have shot Clendenning on January 11 while the victim played in the snow at the Magnolia Pointe Apartments, WRAL reports. Despite the severity of the case and community concerns, authorities have maintained the suspect's anonymity due to his age.
Community members have raised concerns about not knowing the suspect's identity, fearing for their own safety and wondering if the individual could be a nearby resident. In an interview obtained by CBS17, Frasier & Griffin associate attorney Jasmine Griffin explained, "I think the one thing that has really kept this case out of the public eye has been the fact this juvenile is 14 years old." She emphasized that the suspect's age is a key reason the case remains within the juvenile court system.
In addition to the murder charge, the same teen was involved in a car chase through Durham and Chapel Hill, where he and two other suspects fired at a state trooper, according to WRAL. The chase resulted in damage to multiple parked cars in Chapel Hill, bringing further felony and misdemeanor charges against the minor.
Additional charges for the suspect include multiple vehicle break-ins in Durham. The Durham Police Department stated the teen was posed first-degree murder charges about three weeks after Clendenning's death. ABC11 noted the adolescent has also been tied to several other cases, underlining a spree of illegal activity that terrorized the local community.
While Orange County District Attorney Jeff Nieman did not comment on the specific Durham murder case, he mentioned that cases involving juveniles who are 16 or 17 and accused of high-level felonies might be elevated to adult court, which would make their information public. However, this procedure is not applicable to the 14-year-old in question, as the individual falls below the age threshold, CBS17 reports.
