Tag: William Poole

Student charged in alleged plot has case dismissed:

The Kentucky Zombie Kid himself, William Poole, had his case dismissed. Attorneys and judges both agreed that it would be impossible to prosecute Poole for criminal attempt to commit terroristic threatening. The judge even said she never saw the charge successfully prosecuted. However, Judge Brandy O. Brown had a message for Poole…

“That doesn’t mean you need to walk out of here thinking you didn’t necessarily do anything wrong,” Brown told Poole in court.

And this is foreboding…

Brown asked Poole’s grandfather, Kenneth Craft, if Poole had given him any trouble before the school incident.

“Trouble? William didn’t like to follow rules. He doesn’t like authority,” he said. “William is an angry young man.”

And now he’s out.

Poole’s lawyer seeking charge dismissal:

The lawyer of the Kentucky Zombie Kid, William Poole, is trying to get the charges dismissed…

Brian Barker, a public defender from Richmond, alleges that a grand jury indictment charging Poole with criminal attempt to commit terroristic threatening fails to state a criminal offense. Poole initially was charged by police with second-degree terroristic threatening after he allegedly plotted to recruit a gang to take over an unnamed high school.

Barker argues that an overt act must occur in order to be charged with criminal attempt. “Some sort of act or conduct is required to prove that a defendant is serious about carrying out his intentions,” Barker states in his motion. Barker claims that Poole was not indicted on any act or conduct, rather for an alleged statement he made.

“Apart from the legal arguments, the notion of an ‘attempt to threaten’ is an absurdity,” Barker writes. “As a practical matter, how does a person attempt to make a threat? The mere concept is nonsense.”

Barker, in a separate motion, asks District Court Judge Brandy O. Brown to dismiss the indictment due to the statute being unconstitutionally vague. Borrowing from pop culture, Barker quotes an excerpt from a Harry Potter book, suggesting that author J.K. Rowling could be charged with the same terroristic threatening count that Poole faces.

“Just because she is a world-renowned writer does not dictate that she has greater creative liberties than a high school student who is writing fiction for enjoyment,” Barker writes in his motion.

I’m not a lawyer, but doesn’t the fact that Poole tried to recruit people constitute an overt act?

High school student pleads not guilty to misdemeanor charge:

William Poole, the Kentucky Zombie Kid, has pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of criminal attempt to commit terroristic threatening. If convicted, the maximum he could get is 12 months. Then what happens when that twelve months are over?

Jury hands down Poole indictment:

Remember William Poole? The kid who was arrested for making threats against his school, but he said he was just writing a story about zombies for his class?

Then it turned out there were no zombies in the story, and it was not an assignment by any of his teachers, and he tried to recruit other students.

Well, the grand jury handed down an indictment, but only for the misdemeanor charge of attempt to commit terroristic threatening.

The police had charged him with second-degree terroristic threatening, which is a felony.

If convicted, the maximum he could get is 12 months.