The 12-year-old boy who was arrested after his parents, Charles and Marilyn Long, were found dead of gunshot wounds in their home in Burlington last week has been formally charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder for injuring two of his siblings, a five-year-old girl and nine-year-old boy. Bob Watson, the local district attorney, has yet to decide whether to charge the boy as an adult (9News). The Denver Post’s editorial board entertains the idea, saying it could be appropriate depending on what kinds of facts emerge from the slayings.

Experts say a “probable explanation” of the murders is likely to materialize, although people will probably “have a very difficult time understanding what happened,” says Paul Mones, a children’s rights attorney and author of the book When a Child Kills (Associated Press). “There’s a rhyme and reason in these cases,” Mones adds. “It may not be a settling one or an acceptable one.”