A judge will rule on the case of a former Montgomery County high school student charged with making threats of mass violence earlier this year.
Alex Ye, a former student at Wootton High School in Rockville, Maryland, was arrested in April after authorities discovered a 129-page document in which investigators say Ye wrote about strategizing how to carry out a school shooting.
The trial centers around the 129-page document. It’s been referred to as a story that describes a main character fantasizing about shooting up their school. The prosecution argued there are striking similarities between the main character of the story and Ye’s life and therefore that story could reasonably be looked at as a true threat to the school.
The prosecution argued Ye was obsessed with talking about and researching school shootings.
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But the defense argued the document was simply a work of fiction, and at the end of the story the main character does not end up carrying out a school shooting. While it was disturbing and uncomfortable, it does not equate to a threat of mass violence, the defense said.
The prosecution laid out a timeline of concerning behavior they say Ye exhibited:
- In December 2022, a school therapist reported Ye talked about shooting up the school.
- In December 2023, Ye posted a message on Discord talking about wanting to “repeat Columbine.”
- In March 2024, Ye shared his document with an acquaintance, who was concerned after reading the first few pages and alerted police.
- April Ye was arrested.
Three witnesses spoke on the stand at the bench trial. The acquaintance who reported Ye to the police said Ye would talk about school shootings often and the notoriety that came with them.
“He wanted to become a spectacle … I believe an example was the Sandy Hook shooter,” said the acquaintance on the stand.
A therapist from Wootton High School testified about a counseling session she had with Ye in December 2022.
“Determined there was rather intense homicidal ideation around a school shooting,” said the therapist.
The therapist disclosed those signs to the school administration and recommended Ye seek treatment at a mental health facility.
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The principal of Wootton High School said after investigators told him about the document, security measures were increased around Wootton and other surrounding schools.
Judge Jill Cummins said she will render her verdict Dec. 30
