JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (CN) - The Missouri Supreme Court will not get involved in deciding whether a 16-year-old girl accused of murder can continue her education while awaiting trial - for now. The court dismissed a request from Alyssa Bustamante's attorneys, but said the motion could be refiled.
Bustamante is charged as an adult in the killing of her 9-year-old neighbor, Elizabeth Olten. Prosecutors say Bustamante killed Olten because she wanted to know what it felt like to kill somebody. Bustamante has pleaded not guilty.
It is the fourth time Bustamante has been rejected in her quest to complete her high school course work while she's jailed awaiting trial.
Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed a brief with the state Supreme Court this month, supporting Bustamante's request. But Cole County Sheriff Greg White said that Bustamante has the same access to GED programs as adult inmates.
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