Teen Pleads Guilty In 'Columbine-Style' Attack Conspiracy
Three Teens Plotted To Attack Junior High School, Authorities Say
A second Preston Junior High School
student has pleaded guilty to charges in a threat to launch a
Columbine High School-style attack.
The student, who was 14 at the time of the incident, pleaded guilty to two separate charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree assault. At the hearing, the teen
and his parents apologized to the community.
Two 14-year-olds and a 15-year-old were arrested in February. The three were
accused of planning an attack at the south Fort Collins junior high
that involved firearms and included blowing up a propane tank.
Four girls who were friends of the accused trio told Fort
Collins police of the threats in January after they said that one of the boys threatened to kill them in the assault. Police said that the assault was
aimed at the "preps and jocks" of Preston.
The 14-year-old was sentenced Friday as a violent juvenile offender and
will spend one to two years in the custody of the Department of
Youth Corrections, said Chief Deputy District Attorney Larry
Abrahamson.
As part of his sentence, the court is recommending he be
sent to Nevada for a wilderness, boot-camp program called Rite of
Passage, Abrahamson said.
He also was sentenced to one year of parole following the
sentence, and another two years of probation that will run
concurrent with his parole. He is also required to complete 250
hours of community service while on probation and will have to
testify, if requested, against the other 14-year-old at trial next month.
A trial for the other 14-year-old, who is charged with conspiracy to
commit first-degree murder, is scheduled to start July 23.
The 15-year-old pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit
first-degree assault. He was sentenced in March to a two-year
suspended sentence that includes 80 hours of community service and
ordered to serve six days in an intensive work-therapy program as
part of his intensive supervised probation.
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The student, who was 14 at the time of the incident, pleaded guilty to two separate charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree assault. At the hearing, the teen
and his parents apologized to the community.
Two 14-year-olds and a 15-year-old were arrested in February. The three were
accused of planning an attack at the south Fort Collins junior high
that involved firearms and included blowing up a propane tank.
Four girls who were friends of the accused trio told Fort
Collins police of the threats in January after they said that one of the boys threatened to kill them in the assault. Police said that the assault was
aimed at the "preps and jocks" of Preston.
The 14-year-old was sentenced Friday as a violent juvenile offender and
will spend one to two years in the custody of the Department of
Youth Corrections, said Chief Deputy District Attorney Larry
Abrahamson.
As part of his sentence, the court is recommending he be
sent to Nevada for a wilderness, boot-camp program called Rite of
Passage, Abrahamson said.
He also was sentenced to one year of parole following the
sentence, and another two years of probation that will run
concurrent with his parole. He is also required to complete 250
hours of community service while on probation and will have to
testify, if requested, against the other 14-year-old at trial next month.
A trial for the other 14-year-old, who is charged with conspiracy to
commit first-degree murder, is scheduled to start July 23.
The 15-year-old pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit
first-degree assault. He was sentenced in March to a two-year
suspended sentence that includes 80 hours of community service and
ordered to serve six days in an intensive work-therapy program as
part of his intensive supervised probation.
- February 26, 2001: Negotiations Continue In Alleged 'Columbine-Style' Attack Case
- February 9, 2001: Teens Charged In 'Columbine-Style' Attack Conspiracy
Copyright 2002 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
