(Fox 25)
With details beginning to emerge about the life of Philip Chism, more is being learned about his home life and his family. The 14-year-old accused killer of teacher Colleen Ritzer had moved to Massachusetts from Tennessee during the summer of 2013 and appeared to be settling in well, until this tragic incident.
Here’s what we know so far about Chism’s family:
1. His Mother Wanted a Divorce in 2001 Citing a ‘Physical, Emotional and Alcohol Abuse’
In documents obtained by Heavy, it’s said that Diana Chism filed for divorce against Stacy Chism in March 2001. The couple were married in September 1998 with Philip being born in January 1999.
The couple reconciled in the summer of 2001 so the divorce wasn’t finalized. In the documents it’s stated that any visitation rights held by Stacy Chism would be under the mother’s supervision.
2. His Father is in the Military
Chism’s soccer coach in Tennessee told The Boston Globe that Phil Chism’s father, Stacy, was a military man. He added that when his father wasn’t deployed, Stacy Chism would attend games, sometimes in uniform.
CNN reported on the rapid movements of Chism throughout his life:
Chism attended fourth grade at a Clarksville, Tennessee, elementary school, said Clarksville-Montgomery County, Tennessee, school system spokeswoman Elise Shelton. He then spent fifth grade at Hammock Pointe Elementary in Boca Raton, Florida, according to Palm Beach County school spokesman Owen Torres.
The next three years, he was back in Tennessee at Rossville Middle School in Clarksville, according to Shelton. Then his family moved about 1,150 miles northeast to Massachusetts.
Stacy Chism did not move with the family to Massachusetts but stayed in contact, according to The Boston Globe but Fox 17 in Tennessee reports that his father did move with the rest of his family.
3. He Has a Sister
(Handout)
According to court documents, at the time of the divorce documents were filed, Chism has one sister who is now 13 years ago. On October 2
4. Chism’s Mother Attended Her Son’s Bail Hearing on October 23
What appears to be Chism’s family…sitting in corner with head down hugging each other #danvers #necn
— Nicole Jacobs (@NicoleJacobsTV) October 23, 2013
Diana Chism was later photographed leaving the courtroom by press photgraphers.
5. A Woman, Whose Details Match Those of Chism’s Mother, Works as a Social Worker
A LinkedIn page for a Diana Chism, 34, which says she now lives in the Greater Boston Area, shows she is a graduate of Austin Peay State University. This matches a PeekYou page, which cites a Diana Chism who graduated from the same school and lived in Clarksville, Tennessee, and Boca Raton, Florida, the same towns listed as former homes of Philip Chism. She’s listed as working at the school on their website as of September 2011, “…teacher/trainer in the department of social work.”