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Police: Florida teen killed mom after arguing over bad grade

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Authorities say a 15-year-old Florida boy strangled his mother after getting into an argument over a bad grade he received.

Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood told news outlets the teenager was arrested early Saturday after the body of 46-year-old Gail Cleavenger was found buried under a nearby church's fire pit. Investigators say the boy killed her after they argued about his school grades.

Chitwood says he faces murder charges. It was unclear Saturday if he has a lawyer to represent him. The Associated Press typically does not identify juveniles charged with crimes.

After the killing, authorities say the boy called friends to help him make it look like someone had burglarized the home. The boy initially told deputies his mother was missing.

The two 17-year-old friends face multiple charges.

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Shelby Thevenot

Shelby has lived across Canada. She grew up near Winnipeg, Manitoba then obtained her B.F.A in Multidisciplinary Fine Arts at the University of Lethbridge in Lethbridge, Alberta. In 2014 she moved to Montreal, Quebec to study French and thrived in the Visual Journalism Graduate Diploma program at Concordia University. Now she works at iNFO News where she strives to get the stories that matter to the Okanagan Valley community.

Member of:

The Professional Writers Association of Canada

Quebec Writers Federation

English Language Arts Network