GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Prosecutors want a teen who allegedly made an online threat against Green Bay West High School to be prosecuted as an adult.
State law prohibits the media from identifying those being prosecuted in juvenile court.
A social media post threatening a shooting at West High on March 15. A teenage boy was taken into custody, and no one was injured.
The boy, whose age was not disclosed, faces charges of making a terroristic threat and using computer to facilitate a threat. Additionally, he faces two battery and other charges from already-pending cases. Prosecutors want the cases moved to adult court, where he could face more severe consequences.
In court Wednesday, defense attorney Imani Hollie said she would be filing a motion asking for making a terrorist threat charge to be dismissed. Additionally, the defense will challenge the move to adult court, she said.
A May 18 hearing was scheduled.
The boy is in secure detention, the juvenile version of jail. After hearing from the attorneys, and the mother of the intended victim of the alleged shooting threat, Judge John Zakowski ordered that teen remain in custody.
The March threat at West High followed a series of other threats at Preble and East high schools in December.
During the course of a one-week span in December, there were three separate social media threats against Preble High. Four students were charged and now have all been found delinquent — the juvenile version of guilty — in the cases.
A 15-year-old boy will be sentenced for disorderly conduct on May 4.
A 16-year-old boy responsible for another threat was placed on county supervision until he turns 17 late in the year. In Wisconsin, 17-year-olds are under the jurisdiction of adult courts. He must perform 76 hours of community service, and not use social media while on supervision. He was barred from social media and must write a paper on the impact of actual school shootings.
Two teenage girls responsible for another of the Preble threats received a similar sentence, albeit with 100 hours of community service because their supervision time is a full year.
The week after the threats at Preble, a student brought a gun to East High. Two students were found delinquent in those cases.
A 15-year-old boy who provided the gun — and also was found delinquent for a series of other incidents — was placed on two years of supervision in an out-of-home setting. Specifically, he was placed at Rawhide Youth Services near New London. He must also perform 100 hours of community service.
The 16-year-old girl who brought the gun to East was placed on supervision for a year, and must perform 100 hours of community service.
The combination of the threats led the school district to place all middle and high schools into online learning for several days in December. No one was injured in any of the events.
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