A 15-year-old Elizabethtown girl will be tried as an adult after she shot and killed her friend.
Upon the Elizabethtown Police Department arriving at the scene, officers made contact with 21-year-old Bryan P. Harbison, of McDaniels, who was performing CPR on 15-year-old Katen Elizabeth Atwell, of Elizabethtown, who had been shot in the chest, according to the Elizabethtown Police Department.
A second 15-year-old girl, now identified as 15-year-old Chasity Nettles, of Elizabethtown, was also at the scene.
Atwell was transported to Baptist Health Hardin where she was pronounced deceased.
During the investigation, Harbison told officers he met the juveniles on Snapchat and believed the victim to be 18-years-old.
Before picking up the girls, Harbison purchased alcohol. The three then went to the Lowe’s parking lot to hang out and drink, according to the Elizabethtown PD. At the time of the shooting, police said Harbison and Atwell were in the back seat of his truck, while Nettles was in the driver’s seat.
Nettles told police that she “picked up a handgun from inside the vehicle, pointed it at the victim, and pulled the trigger,” striking the victim in the chest, police said.
“The juvenile suspect (Nettles) and Harbison provided different accounts of how the suspect came into possession of the firearm. The juvenile stated that Harbison had placed the firearm on the center console and told her it was unloaded. Harbison advised the firearm had been secured in his glove compartment and that the suspect removed it without his knowledge,” EPD said in a press release.
Nettles was charged with murder and placed into custody. Several media outlets, including The News-Enterprise and WLKY.com, report that Nettles will be tried as an adult.
Her arraignment is scheduled for Wednesday.
Harbison was charged with third-degree unlawful transaction with a minor and first-degree wanton endangerment. He was lodged in the Hardin County Detention Center where he remains on a $100,000 cash bond.
(Photo l-r: Bryan P. Harbison; Katen Atwell, courtesy of Carey and Son Funeral Home)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
