Tuesday November 10, 1998 From the Channel 4 newsroom, here's the transcript of today's top story...

By RON WORD, Associated Press Writer

A 14-year-old boy was arrested Tuesday in the stabbing death of an 8-year-old neighbor girl whose body was found taped to the bottom of his water bed.

Joshua Earl Patrick Phillips confessed and was charged with murdering Maddie Clifton, who lived across the street, Sheriff Nat Glover said.

Maddie vanished after dashing out of the house the night of Nov. 3 to play with friends.

On Tuesday, police, alerted by the boy's mother, found Maddie's body in a fetal position under a sheet of plywood supporting the water bed, which was filled, Glover said. The girl had been stabbed at least nine times and was struck in the head.

Detectives recovered a knife and a baseball bat believed to be the weapons used to kill Maddie, he said.

"He put her under the bed and taped her up in it," the sheriff said.

Glover refused to discuss a motive and said there was no evidence that Maddie was sexually assaulted.

Hundreds of volunteers had distributed leaflets with her picture, and her parents pleaded tearfully for her return.

On Sunday, family members and volunteers handed out fliers and yellow ribbons to 70,000 fans at the Jacksonville Jaguars football game. The Jaguar coaches also wore the ribbons.

Authorities had searched homes in the working-class neighborhood three times. During the most recent search of Joshua's home Monday, officers detected an odor, which his mother explained came from birds and other pets, the sheriff said.

Joshua's mother, Melissa Phillips, grew suspicious after the police search, pulled aside the frame of the bed Tuesday morning, saw Maddie's feet and summoned an officer, Glover said. Investigators believe Maddie was killed in the house shortly after she disappeared.

Joshua, who has no criminal record, would not be eligible for the death penalty because of his age. No decision was disclosed about whether prosecutors would go before a judge to get him charged as an adult.

If you who'd like to send cards to Maddie Clifton's family or donate money to a memorial fund in her memory, mail to: San Jose Catholic Church c/o Maddie Clifton Memorial Fund 3619 Toledo Road Jacksonville, FL 32217

The girl's beige-and-brown house sits near the end of a cul-de-sac of well-kept, single-family homes. Police tape kept the curious off her street, where yellow ribbons still hung from the leafy oak trees.

Maddie "was a very sweet little girl," neighbor Bertie Hollins said. "Everybody loved her. She used to come by my house for cookies and she swam in our pool." As for the boy, Ms. Hollins said, he "appeared to be a very nice, handsome young man."

Stay tuned to NewsChannel 4 for continuing coverage of this tragic story.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)