A former Montgomery County student who wrote a 129-page document describing the planning of a mass shooting went to trial. News4’s Mauricio Casillas reports.
A Maryland teen who authorities say wrote 129 pages about a school shooting was convicted Wednesday of threatening mass violence.
Alex Ye, 19, of Rockville, was found guilty on one count of threat of mass violence after a two-day bench trial in December.
Prosecutors described Ye’s long document as a chilling plan to kill students at Wootton High School, his former school. His defense called the document simply a disturbing work of fiction.
Judge Jill Cummins determined Ye threatened real violence, Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy told reporters.
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“The judge said this was not a joke, this was not jest and it was not protected speech,” he 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 Wootton High.
- 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.
- In April 2024, Ye was arrested.
Three witnesses spoke on the stand at Ye’s trial. The acquaintance who reported Ye to police said Ye often spoke about school shootings and notoriety.
“He wanted to become a spectacle … I believe an example was the Sandy Hook shooter,” the acquaintance said on the stand.
A therapist from Wootton High 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.
Wootton High’s principal said after investigators told him about the document, security measures were increased around Wootton and surrounding schools.
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McCarthy, the state’s attorney, thanked Ye’s acquaintance, school counselor and psychiatric facility staff for notifying authorities about what they considered threats.
Ye faces up to 10 years in prison and is set to be sentenced Feb. 28.
