Judge sets date for evidentiary hearings in case of teen charged with murder

Circuit Judge William L. Syler set a date Monday for evidence to be made in the case of Owen Welty, the 14-year-old boy charged with first-degree murder.

On Dec. 13, the defense may present testimony supporting a number of evidentiary motions they have made in the case, including a request for a change of venue, a bond review and bringing a jury from another location to hear the case, Syler said.

A previous request to consider reducing Welty's bond was denied at an Oct. 16 hearing.

"Unless circumstances have changed, I'm not sure I'm inclined to go along with it," Syler said of the latest request for a bond consideration.

Welty is accused of killing his 64-year-old neighbor, Donald McCollough.

Police discovered McCollough's body behind his house just east of Bloomfield, Mo. He suffered a single gunshot wound to the face.

Though the state certified Welty as an adult for the crimes of first-degree murder and armed criminal action, he cannot receive the death penalty if convicted.

Conflicting stories Welty told police about when he heard the gunshot caused them to investigate him.

Welty told police he'd been nearby and heard McCollough yell following a gunshot, but an autopsy later revealed the victim's vocal chords were severed by the bullet, rendering him unable to make a sound.

Interviews with neighbors also conflicted with what Welty told police about the time he heard the gunshot.

He later admitted that he fired his gun that afternoon and might have accidentally shot McCollough.

Welty is currently housed at the Cape Girardeau County Jail on a $250,000 cash-only bond.