TheTrenchcoat Chronicles

Category: School Violence

  • Change of venue requested in one of the Marshfield trials

    Nee trial is going through motions:

    The ever-humorous attorney of Joseph Nee, Thomas Dreschler, appeared in court today with his client in an attempt to get the venue changed. He complains that media scrutiny has been too intense against his client. I’ll have to take his word for that since I’m not there. However, I do have to take issue with this statement made by Mr. Dreschler…

    Drechsler also said that the media has maintained too strong a focus on Thomas Nee, Joseph’s father who is president of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association. He said Nee has been frequently referred to as “the son of a powerful police patrolman.”

    “He’s (Nee) an extremely visual person for reasons completely unrelated to this case,” Drechsler said. “He has no relation to this case other than that of a concerned parent.”

    I disagree Mr. Dreschler. I think he has a lot of relation to this case actually. Well, at least the fact that he’s not only a Boston cop but also the head of the Patrolmen’s Association is very relative to the case. Mr. Dreschler keeps saying how Tobin Kerns has a criminal record but Joe Nee does not. Yet I’ve heard rumors of alleged criminal behavior that was swept under the rug due to people in a position of authority. I’m sure it has been but if it hasn’t it needs to be investigated to see if Joe Nee ever received special treatment by law enforcement because of his father’s position.

    No date has been given on when the judge will decide.

  • Quartz Hill suspects plead not guilty

    Columbine-Style Massacre Planned:

    The two teenage suspects who were arrested for planning an attack against their school appeared in court today. Guess what they pleaded. That’s right. Not guilty. One of the kids confessed and they found bomb-making materials in one of the kid’s house and they pleaded not guilty. I get the feeling hilarity is going to ensue from the defense attorney.

    Their next court appearance will be at the beginning of January to see whether or not they should be tried as adults. I think you already know my opinion the matter. Considering they were planning to commit mass murder than kill themselves I think it’s obvious that they should be tried as adults. They’re charged with conspiracy to commit murder not conspiracy to egg someone’s house. You plan to do a big boy crime you should plan to do big boy time.

    And for those of you who say these kids need “help” and not prison, would you still be saying that if it was your daughter they planned to dismember?

  • Plot thwarted at Quartz Hill High in California

    Arrests cited in Columbine-style attack plot:

    A Major Columbine-like plot has been thwarted in California. Two teens ages 15 and 17 were arrested on Thursday for planning an attack on Quartz Hill High School in California. The plot was scheduled for Valentine’s Day 2006 because, according to the article, a song by Marilyn Manson. The kids were allegedly teased for their “goth” appearance. As we know the media has yet to get the description of “goth” right but back to the matter at hand. Both teens had attended Quartz Rock High but were transferred to other schools for discipline problems. One of those problems may have been this…

    The boys, ages 15 and 17, had been on probation in connection with a 2003 assault in which a 14-year-old boy was sodomized with a metal rod.

    So you know we’re dealing with well-adjusted individuals here.

    Here’s how the plot was uncovered…

    The purported plot came to light Wednesday when a girl contacted a Quartz Hill High vice principal and reported that the teens were planning a Columbine-type attack on the school.

    Deputies said the girl reported being told by friends that the 15-year-old did not like her and was planning to kidnap and torture her and cut off her arms and legs.

    Here’s what was found at each of their homes…

    A search of the 17-year-old’s house in Lancaster turned up ammunition, a knife and puzzles about murder and suicide, among other items, deputies said.

    Deputies recovered at the 15-year-old’s Quartz Hill residence a gas mask, carbon dioxide canisters, and pictures of Columbine shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, Charles Manson, and Lee Harvey Oswald.

    Deputies also found knives, anti-government and hate literature and printed instructions downloaded from the Internet on how to make bombs.

    And before anyone starts claiming they were framed and are just misunderstood boys they basically confessed to the plot…

    The 15-year-old told detectives that the pair had been experimenting with _and had exploded – carbon-dioxide canister bombs, Molotov cocktails and light-bulb bombs.

    The boy showed investigators an injury, the result of a “propane-type pipe bomb” prematurely detonating and sending a screw through a finger.

    The boy said he was going to get guns through an unidentified friend from a pawn shop, detectives said.

    All because they were teased. Boo hoo…

    The boys, who dressed in the Goth style, characterized by black clothing, black makeup and nail polish and piercings, said they felt ostracized at Quartz Hill High, deputies said.

    “They were called names,” Detective Steve Owen said. “They didn’t like it and wanted to retaliate against them by killing them.”

    You know I wish that people, especially high school kids, were tolerant of people who are different from themselves but we can’t just wave a magic wand and make it change overnight. And intolerance is not against the law. Plotting mass murder and torture is.

    And again the age-old question needs to be asked. Where were the parents?

    Now some odds and ends…

    According to this article from the LA Times the 15-year-old had the word “hate” carved into his arm.

    I’m sure this is just a coincidence but Quartz Hill High School’s sports teams are known as The Rebels. The same as Columbine High School.

    Here are the lyrics to Marilyn Manson’s Valentine’s Day. Of course, I’m not blaming Marilyn Manson except for being a no talent hack that’s stealing Alice Cooper’s and Ozzy’s old gimmicks.

    More on this as soon as more details become available.

  • Eric Schorling sentenced

    Judge hands Romeo teen who stabbed ex-girlfriend stiff sentence:

    Eric Schorling, the teen who was convicted of stabbing Nicole Lambert in the back at Romeo High in Michigan, was sentenced yesterday to 10-15 years in adult prison…

    “In one respect you are fortunate,” Maceroni said. “Either one centimeter up or down or to either side, and Nicole wouldn’t be here today and you, young man, would have spent the rest of your life in the Michigan Department of Corrections. That’s how lucky you are.”

    You have to love a judge who tells it like it is.

    Of course, we had some humorous shenanigans from the defense attorney during the trial…

    During the trial, Garton tried to introduce evidence about the differences between the brains of adolescents and adults. He also sought to include testimony that the bullying Schorling received after he broke up with Lambert helped lead to the attack.

    “This didn’t happen in a vacuum,” Garton said of the stabbing. “If they had just separated and gone their own ways, and there wasn’t this name-calling, this never would have happened.”

    You know what the name calling was? “Nazi”. Eric Schorling had a swastika tattoo. It’s hard to muster up any sympathy a Nazi psychopath.

    At least the prosecuting attorney has some sense…

    Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith disagreed.

    “Sorry if I appear harsh,” Smith said. “But this girl almost died. Kids are teased every day, but they don’t go out and try to kill someone.”

    Now, where have I heard that before?

    However, the 10-15 years is not the only sentence Schorling will receive…

    Schorling still faces an additional charge relating to his escape from Macomb County’s Juvenile Justice Center. Schorling, now 17, had already pleaded guilty and was slated to be sentenced to less than seven years in prison, but that plea was withdrawn after the escape.

    You should have taken the plea Einstein but I’m so glad you didn’t.

  • Marshfield trials to start soon

    Nee, Kerns heading to trial:

    This is the first news we’ve hard out of Marshfield in a while. It basically just states that both Joe Nee and Toby Kerns are due back in court shortly for the charges filed against both of them in planning a Columbine-like attack against their school. But again what kills me is what defense attorneys have to say. In this case Joe Nee’s defense attorney Thomas Drechsler…

    Drechsler pointed out that while Toby Kerns has a criminal history, having been arrested on breaking and entering charges, and has been treated in a psychiatric facility, Nee has never been in trouble with a law or treated for mental illness.

    Like I’ve said before that’s great that Joe Nee doesn’t have a “criminal record”. His dad is a Boston cop. As much respect as I have for the police, I know that there is special treatment for family members of cops. It’s not that much of a stretch to think that Joe Nee has gotten out of trouble by saying his dad was a Boston cop.

    The article refreshes our memory again on the whole situation…

    Toby Kerns was arrested on Sept. 17, 2004 after Nee and two other teens, Joseph Sullivan and Daniel Farley, went to the police and said Kerns had hand drawn maps of the school, had looked up how to make bombs on the Internet and was trying to order guns. Nee told police that most of the information was kept in a black binder in a spare room at the Kerns home.

    Police found the binder and evidence that Kerns’ computer had been used to look at Web sites like the Anarchist’s Cookbook, which explains how to make explosives.. Nee was arrested Oct. 18, 2004 after other students came forward with information implicating him in the plan.

    Nee lived in the Kerns home for several weeks late last spring, and Toby’s father, Ben Kerns said he noticed the older boy seemed fascinated with Nazism and appeared to be a bad influence on his son. Ben Kerns said Nee stayed in the spare bedroom where the black binder was found.

    Kerns claims Nee, not his son, created the maps of the school and looked at bomb making Web sites while he was staying in their home. But Nee’s attorney argued that the plan was Toby’s and his client went to police to prevent him from carrying it out.

    What the article leaves out is that Joe Nee wore a t-shirt to school that had pictures of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold that said: “Remember the Heroes”. Joe Nee went to school for Halloween one year dressed as Eric Harris. Joe Nee was witnessed bring a gun to school even though it’s in doubt whether or not the gun was real. The reason Joe Nee was staying at the Kernses’ was that he assaulted his father and his father threw him out. Toby Kerns did nothing like that. Like I’ve said before it sounds like to me that Joe Nee went to police before Toby Kerns could. It also sounds like to me that Joe Nee was one the planning this attack and Toby decided to bail on the plan after he got help.

    Not only that but I received an e-mail today from someone in the Marshfield area that said there’s a rumor going around that a friend of Joe Nee’s was arrested for having a hit list and hand-drawn maps of Marshfield High.

    As far as I’m concerned Toby Kerns’ only crime was trusting Joe Nee and talking his dad into letting Joe Nee stay at their house. I only hope a jury can see that as well.

  • Campbell County High survivor story

    Campbell County school shooting survivor shares story:

    One of the surviving victims of the Campbell County High School shooting, Assistant Principal Jim Pierce, decided to share his story with the local media. I’ll just quote the highlights…

    “After a little discussion, bang, bang, bang,” Pierce describes what happened. “It was quick.”

    Pierce, now recovering at home, says he tackled Bartley after a few shots had been fired.

    The next thing he remembers is seeing Bartley tied up.

    A teacher peeling Pierce off the floor told him to hang on and keep breathing.

    “I know if someone didn’t do something, we were all doomed,” Pierce explained. “I just jumped to grab him, and I think that’s when he shot me.”

    The bullet that grazed Pierce’s hand came close to killing him.

    “It came through the back of my arm, through my side and it collapsed both my lungs,” he pointed to the scars. “I’ve never experienced that kind of pain before.”

    This is the first time in 36 years of teaching Pierce has used his sick days for illness.

    Pierce is left wondering why a student whose father was a boyhood friend would want to hurt him.

    “We ran around together,” Pierce said of Kenneth, Sr. “I really hadn’t met Kenny Junior until he enrolled him at the high school. He introduced him because we were friends growing up.”

    Other than that introduction, Pierce said the two had waved at each other in the hallway.

    Both Pierce and Seale will carry bullets forever. Pierce isn’t sure how he feels about having it lodged behind his aorta.

    He says he doesn’t have any hard feelings towards the alleged shooter but thinks he does need help.

    He’s definitely a bigger man than me.

  • Jourdain pleads guilty

    Teen Pleads Guilty for Role in Shootings:

    Louis Jourdain, the teen arrested for allegedly being a co-conspirator in the Red Lake shootings, has pleaded guilty threatening interstate communications. Conspiracy to commit murder, and conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States charges were dropped.

    The docket, some of which had been blacked out, gave few details of the charge, saying only that Jourdain used a computer to conduct interstate communications that “could be taken by an objective observer as threatening” sometime between Jan. 1, 2003 and March 2005.

    No sentencing date has been set yet.

    But according to this article even though Jourdain may get off easy in criminal court he’s still looking at problems with possible civil trials.

    “The civil part is just beginning,” Minneapolis attorney Marshall Tanick said. “The end of the criminal case is just the turning point to start the wheels moving in the civil end, of which there’s no shortage of plaintiffs and an abundance of defendants.”

    Personally, I don’t see how a civil suit could be filed unless Jourdain had implicit knowledge of the exact time and place of the attack. Since according to the judgment reached it doesn’t seem to me that he had such knowledge. Then again I’m not a lawyer. I really should keep one around here. Any volunteers?

  • Wrongful death suit in Red Lake?

    Mother of Jeff Weise seeks to be appointed trustee:

    The mother of Red Lake school gunman Jeff Weise has asked to be appointed as trustee for her son’s next of kin – a move that could be a precursor to a wrongful-death suit.

    According to the article being appointed trustee would also allow access to information such as medical records or investigative reports.

    For those of you who may not remember the circumstances regarding Jeff Weise’s mother…

    Joanne Weise is still recovering from a brain injury suffered 6 1/2 years ago when she survived a traffic accident that killed the driver of the car she was in.

    Now its just speculation at this point but if she is going to file a wrongful death I wonder who she could possibly sue. Has anyone seen Jack Thompson in the Minnesota area?

  • Red Lake families file motion to attend trial

    Red Lake victims’ families seek access to Louis Jourdain’s trial:

    Families of Red Lake school shooting victims filed a motion in federal court Wednesday seeking access to the trial of a juvenile arrested in the case, according to sources familiar with the case.

    The government has filed a similar motion seeking to allow the families into the trial, one of the sources said.

    So hopefully the victims’ families will be able to attend. And the media will be shut out.

  • Campbell County Victims Update

    School shooting victim’s home burglarized:

    How bad does this suck? On the day assistant principal, Jim Pierce was shot by Ken Bartley Jr. that night his house was broken into and an ATV, a rifle, an air compressor, and several tools were stolen.

    “We have several leads; the detectives have worked extensively ever since that happened, fingerprinted the residence and tracked down many leads,” said Campbell County Sheriff Ron McClellan.

    There’s a special place in hell for thieves like that.

    Campbell Co. principal released from hospital:

    At least we have some better news here. Principal Gary Seale was released from University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville.