Two teenagers in Georgia accused of killing a high school boy had made a suicide pact, but decided to kill someone else first.
A jury on Tuesday heard the disturbing videotaped confession of Dakota White, one of the boys accused of murdering Perry High School graduate Samuel Poss in October 2016.
White, a ninth-grade high school dropout, told detectives that he and his friend Brandon Warren were depressed and wanted to kill themselves, 13WMAZ reports.
Before going through with their suicide pact, the teens decided to kill someone else first because they wanted to know what it felt like.
‘We just figured might as well,’ White said during his confession. ‘It came down to might as well see how it feels to kill someone before we kill ourselves.’
Dakota White (center) was found guilty on Tuesday to several charges including malice murder and felony murder for the death of 18-year-old Sam Poss
White (left) and his friend Brandon Warren (left) strangled and stabbed Poss to death in October 2016 after luring the victim to White’s Perry, Georgia home
The courtroom was shown a videotaped confession in which White told police that he and Warren murdered Poss because they wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone
The two teen had made a suicide pact, police said, but decided to first kill someone. White said they chose Poss (pictured center with his parents) because he was an easy target
‘We didn’t see no reason not to, we were about to die, what did we care for?’
White said he and Warren were going to pick a victim but settled on Poss, an acquaintance, because he was an easy target. The teen said he knew Poss was a computer whiz so he pretended he needed help with a computer glitch.
White said he sent Poss a message asking for help and the 18-year-old responded ‘right away’.
The night of the murder White and Warren, then 17 and 18, respectively, picked up Poss and drove him to White’s grandparents’ house. Before they could even get out the car White said he wrapped a telephone wire around Poss’ neck and started choking him.
When the write snapped, White said he used his arms to strangle Poss as Warren stabbed him. The two teens then dumped Poss’ body in a nearby wooded area in Perry and spent the next 10 hours cleaning the car, which belonged to White’s grandparents.
Police said the grandparents were out of town the night of the murder.
‘I knew I was’t gonna get away with it,’ White told detectives. ‘I felt too bad.’
The second teen accused of killing Poss, Brandon Warren, will face trial next week. Poss, pictured above with his mother, had recently graduated from Perry High School when he was killed
Four days after the heinous crime, White turned himself in and confessed to the crime and showed Perry police where the body was.
A jury deliberated for 20 minutes before finding White guilty of all counts, including malice murder, felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, concealing the death of another and tampering with evidence.
White, now 19, will be sentenced after Warren’s trial next week.
A Houston country District Attorney told 13WMAZ that because White was under the age of 18 when the crime was committed, they could not pursue the death penalty.
After speaking with Poss’ family, the DA said they won’t push for the death penalty with Warren either.