Suspects In Teen's Fatal Stabbing Are 15, 13 Years Old: Austin PD

AUSTIN, TEXAS — The suspects in a fatal stabbing of a teenager that occurred over the weekend in North Austin are just 15 and 13 years old, an Austin Police Department spokesman said on Monday.

"It is very rare," Sgt. Eric De Los Santos told reporters at the press briefing, referring to the murder suspects' young ages. "At this age, it's very rare and surprising. Shocking."

Carson McCullough Smith, 18, died the day after being stabbed along the 8100 block of Sonnet Avenue just before 6 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 25. In pretty short order after interviewing witnesses, police were able to arrest the older juvenile suspect on Saturday morning and the younger one the following Sunday morning.

Related story: Teen Dies After Stabbing In North Austin

Smith had attended Anderson High School located a mere mile from the stabbing, according to reports. He was deemed as "medically deceased" by the evening of Saturday, Jan. 26, with reports indicating he body was being kept viable to prepare for organ donation.

De Los Santos noted some of the witnesses implemented life-saving measures in attempting to save Smith's life before medics arrived. Those efforts, the police sergeant suggested, likely allowed medics with the Austin-Travis County EMS to transport the young victim to Dell Seton Medical Center for treatment rather than arriving at the site with a victim already dead at the scene.

The sergeant was unable to provide further details in answering reporters' questions given strict privacy guidelines in Texas as it relates to juveniles. "This state's very protective of our juveniles," he noted. Both suspects remain at Gardner-Betts Juvenile Justice Center under murder charges, according to police.

Photo of Carson McCullough Smith provided by Austin Police Department

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