A second-degree murder charge has been dropped in the case of an 18-year-old accused of killing his mother in a small community on Nova Scotia’s South Shore.

John Buckley was released from custody Tuesday after spending the past nine months behind bars.

The body of 57-year-old Victoria Brauns-Buckley was found inside her home on the Borgels Point Road in Chester Basin, N.S., on March 2, however it’s not known how she died.

Her teenage son was arrested a week later and charged in her death.

Crown lawyer Lloyd Tancock told reporters their case lacks sufficient evidence to obtain a conviction in the case.

Police say the investigation into the death of Brauns-Buckley remains active.