Posted on September 25, 2007

3 Teens Charged in Moore County Girl’s Slaying

Bryan Mims, WRAL.com (Raleigh), September 24, 2007

Three teens were charged with murder Monday night in connection with the slaying of a 12-year-old girl in her Moore County home last week.

Authorities arrested Van Roger Smith Jr., 16, and Sherrod Nicholas Harrison, 19, Monday afternoon.

After a search, the Moore County Sheriff’s Office took Michael Graham Currie, 18, into custody Monday night. All three teens were charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of breaking and entering. All are from Cameron.

Twelve-year-old Emily Elizabeth Haddock was shot to death Friday in her home on Marks Road outside of Vass, authorities said. The girl had stayed home from school with strep throat and was alone.

The Haddock family had moved into the home a few months ago, and authorities said the secluded area—no other houses are in sight—likely made the house a target.

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Investigators said they believe the intruder was startled to find someone at home when he entered Emily’s home, so he shot her several times. Investigators said Monday night they believe they have recovered the murder weapon, a .22 caliber pistol.

Meanwhile, counselors were at New Century Middle School, where Emily was in the seventh grade, on Monday to help students cope with her death. Students spent the day writing letters and making a banner, bracelets and bouquets of flowers.

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“(She was) very quiet, soft spoken, always had a smile. We were talking (Monday) morning that one of the things that many of the students remembered was she always had a big smile on her face,” she said.

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Tight security surrounds three teens charged with killing a 12-year-old girl in her Moore County home last week.

Van Roger Smith Jr., 16, Sherrod Nicholas Harrison, 19, and Michael Graham Currie, 18, all of Cameron, have been charged with first-degree murder and breaking and entering in the death of Emily Elizabeth Haddock.

Emily was dead Friday in her home on Marks Road outside of Vass, authorities said. She had stayed home from school with strep throat and was alone when someone broke into the house and, surprised to find someone inside, shot her several times with a .22-caliber handgun, authorities said.

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Harnett County authorities located a stolen .22-caliber handgun on Monday in a car with stolen plates in the Carolina Hills area of the county. The gun had been stolen last Thursday from a home, and authorities said it might be the weapon used in the slaying.

Perry Ross Schiro, 19, of Cameron, was charged with burglary, larceny and possession of stolen property in connection with the gun.

One of the three teens charged in the slaying also is considered a “person of interest” in an attempted break-in last Friday about a mile from the Haddock home, authorities said.

The three teens made their first court appearance Tuesday morning and were appointed attorneys. A bond hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in District Court, but authorities have declined to disclose the time of the hearing for security reason.

The teens were being held without bond Tuesday in the Moore County Detention Center.