An 11-year-old boy in Tennessee has been convicted of first degree murder in the fatal shooting of his neighbor, 8-year-old Mckayla Dryer. The boy was upset because she would not let him play with her dog, so he went and got his father’s 12 gauge gun and shot the young girl. Mikayla’s mother says he teased her often and she even has even had to report him to the school principal in the past.

Nae Bella | Twitter | Instagram

Witnesses say the little boy was sitting in his house at the window when he asked Mckayla to see one her dogs and she said no. Angered by her response, the young boy grabbed his gun and warned her that he had a gun. When she laughed and said it was not real he shot her, she fell to the ground and was later pronounced dead.

11-year-old Benjamin Tiller was sentenced to spend the remainder of his childhood in prison for the killing of his neighbor. He was ordered by a judge to serve his complete sentence in a juvenile facility until he is 19-years-old.

In his court order, the judge stated that Tiller is in “desperate need of help,”

“A child who commits first-degree murder cannot be willy-nilly turned loose into society”

Tiller is trained in gun safety and often went hunting with his father and grandfather.

Despite his family’s plea that authorities had the wrong child, Tiller was held in prison without bond until his trial. His family believe that he handed the gun to another boy playing with Mckayla, under the impression that it was not loaded, and the other boy is responsible.

In an interview with WATE the boy’s great-grandparents told the news station that the autopsy would prove that she was shot from someone standing on the ground with her, at close range, but the autopsy proved the exact opposite. It showed that she was shot at a downward angle which was most likely from where the boy was sitting in his home at the window.

Tiller’s family say they plan to appeal the judge’s decision.

Such a sad story. To some it may only sound like 8-years, but the years this boy will spend in prison are some of the most crucial years in his life. Both children and their families need prayer for this terrible tragedy.