‘If I Were You I’d Take This Email Very Seriously’
A teenager may face years in prison if convicted of making bomb threats.
“I have decided to email you to inform you that I have targeted your school for a columbine or sandy hook like shooting,’’ began the poorly punctuated email that shut down Brockton High.
“We wish you and your students the best of luck with the next school slaughter. Think of this as the Purge. …The purge of Brockton. Do what you can to stop us,’’ the email taunted.
It was the third threatening email sent to that school in less than a month, and just one of the many that authorities say were sent to 16 schools in four states between March 16 and April 17. They forced Massachusetts’s Brockton High School and Whitman-Hanson Regional High School into closing for a day last week.
The emails were detailed and graphic, and sometimes singled out a specific staffer for torture and sexual abuse. And they were written by a teenager: one lone minor in Tennessee, who authorities said targeted schools not only in his own state, but also in Massachusetts, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
They may have only taken a few moments to write and send, but these threats could cost him years of his life.
Officials are not releasing his age or name, but say he was arrested in Nashville Thursday night. He spent the night in a juvenile detention center before making an initial appearance in front of a U.S. magistrate judge on Friday.
The teen is charged with “sending threatening communications by interstate commerce,’’ a federal crime that, for adults, can carry up to $250,000 in fines, five years in prison, or both.
Trying a juvenile, however, is more complicated, and involves considering multiple factors, David Boling, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Nashville, told Boston.com. This makes it nearly to impossible even for seasoned attorneys to predict the outcome.
Prosecutors will likely try to “hit him hard’’ in court, due to the extreme nature of the threats and to discourage copy-cats, said Boston-area defense lawyer Philip A. Tracy.
In addition to the email sent on April 13, Brockton High School received two other threats, on March 20 and April 10.
The March 20 missive — in which the author described himself as “such a nice person’’ and warned school staff of a bomb that had been or would be placed on campus — was less graphic than those sent later, but still prompted a lockdown at the school.
“If I were you I’d take this email very seriously,’’ it advised.
Another email April 10 came in during dismissal, when students were already leaving for the day, a Brockton schools spokesperson said.
Cardinal Spellman High School, also located in Brockton, and Whitman-Hanson Regional High School were each targeted once, on April 13. Cardinal Spellman remained open, but on high alert.
“We need to have the ultimate faith that our schools are safe,’’ Tracy said. “It’s not a prank, it’s not hazing. It’s much worse.’’
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