Would-Be Wootton Mass Shooter Found Guilty of Threat of Mass Violence

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So, will they get prison for life?

No, nor should he. Ye was a minor when he wrote the "manifesto" and was already in treatment for what appears to be pretty significant mental illness. With time and treatment, and given that no acts of violence were actually committed, there is a good chance he can be a functioning member of our community again.

In a lot of ways, this is a best case scenario. From the reporting, it seems Ye was already in a residential therapeutic setting when the "book" was discovered, and had disclosed the plans to a HS counselor.

So here we have a young person essentially asking for help, school officials correctly identifying a real threat and taking action, and parents willing to fight for residential placement. Not to mention a lack of readily available weapons.

Think about the school shootings that did happen, all of the times school authorities brushed off a threat, or parents resisted treatment, or kept firearms in the home.

I know this is scary, but it's actually kind of a model case for what happens when the system works.

This only did not become a big news story since the parents don't own guns. I can imagine what would have happened if they did. This person needs to be in a psych facility and monitored and hopefully will not acquire a gun ever.

The part that's NOT being reported on in the press, is the extent to which Alex's parents used their wealth, privilege and the medical system to shield their child from the consequences of their dangerous behavior, allowing them to continue school through virtual school rather than forcing them to go to an alternative school or facing expulsion, as certainly would have been the case if they were lower income and Black or Hispanic. MCPS was complicit in this.

Tell me more about this "alternative school" that: A) Focuses on kids with mental health concerns; B) Has immediate availability; and C) Does not require years of attempting less restrictive environments?

I'm not a big VA fan, but claiming that Alex's parents used it to avoid an "alternative school" just shows that you have no idea regarding the landscape of alternative placements. There is no good option, and expulsion would have been almost impossible given that Alex's actions were so clearly linked to mental health issues.

[Anonymous]

Yes, complicit. MCPS would not have given a lower income Black or Hispanic the "option" of virtual school as they did his parents. Alex got special treatment because of his wealth and privilege.

Okay, this just isn't true. I'm personally aware of two low-income Black kids for whom MVA was the option for kids with behavioral challenges that put their peers at risk. The idea that this is some sort of bespoke option available only to UMC Asian families, or families with means in general, is just not true.

[Anonymous]

Everything goes right and people are still mad.

Stay mad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So, will they get prison for life?

No, nor should he. Ye was a minor when he wrote the "manifesto" and was already in treatment for what appears to be pretty significant mental illness. With time and treatment, and given that no acts of violence were actually committed, there is a good chance he can be a functioning member of our community again.

In a lot of ways, this is a best case scenario. From the reporting, it seems Ye was already in a residential therapeutic setting when the "book" was discovered, and had disclosed the plans to a HS counselor.

So here we have a young person essentially asking for help, school officials correctly identifying a real threat and taking action, and parents willing to fight for residential placement. Not to mention a lack of readily available weapons.

Think about the school shootings that did happen, all of the times school authorities brushed off a threat, or parents resisted treatment, or kept firearms in the home.

I know this is scary, but it's actually kind of a model case for what happens when the system works.

This only did not become a big news story since the parents don't own guns. I can imagine what would have happened if they did. This person needs to be in a psych facility and monitored and hopefully will not acquire a gun ever.

The part that's NOT being reported on in the press, is the extent to which Alex's parents used their wealth, privilege and the medical system to shield their child from the consequences of their dangerous behavior, allowing them to continue school through virtual school rather than forcing them to go to an alternative school or facing expulsion, as certainly would have been the case if they were lower income and Black or Hispanic. MCPS was complicit in this.

Complicit? Shouldn’t your issue be with other kids not being cared for as well rather than begrudging a mentally ill child not being sent to an alternative school? It sounds like these were very responsible (and yes, privileged) parents who worked with the system to protect everyone. Shouldn’t that be the goal for everyone? And the kid was prosecuted, btw. Parents seemingly and thankfully didn’t try to cover this up at all of our peril. What outcome did you prefer?

Yes, complicit. MCPS would not have given a lower income Black or Hispanic the "option" of virtual school as they did his parents. Alex got special treatment because of his wealth and privilege.

Furthermore, Alex and his parents are not sorry for what he did and they are not "responsible." They attempted to maneuver their child away from the natural consequences and would have gotten away with it, were it not for Ye's friend who turned him into the police. Ye's lawyer made the defense that his threats were not real and that they were just a story. This is similar to Jennifer and James Crumbley, who encouraged their son Ethan to lie to his school counselor and say that his drawings were merely drawings and that he didn't intend to hurt anybody. Later that day, he shot up his classmates.

Thankfully, the judge in Ye's case did not fall for that BS and rightfully found him guilty of threats of mass violence. There is nothing good or responsible about this family.

I won’t pretend to know every detail of the facts but a lawyer’s job is a jealous defense. You can’t fairly fully conflate a family’s position with that of a lawyer’s. And the student here is the client.

You don't think Alex's parents aren't footing the bill for his lawyer? They're on board with pretending like the threats were fiction. But anyway, you've already conceded you're not that familiar with the facts in this case so debating it with you is moot.

You’re clearly not an attorney.
Anyway, my understanding is that they had him hospitalized for five months due to homicidal ideation before the criminal case started. They weren’t covering it up, it seems. And they may have more to fear for themselves than anyone. Thankfully, I haven’t walked in their shoes. But it appears they sought help and had no guns. While I’m open to learning new information that could change my mind (I don’t know them and none of us have all the facts), based on what I’ve read, my prayers and sympathies are with them.

[Anonymous]

The parents feared their biological female child going to prison. I can understand that. I just hope they were planning to keep their child institutionalized if the acquittal was granted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Yes, complicit. MCPS would not have given a lower income Black or Hispanic the "option" of virtual school as they did his parents. Alex got special treatment because of his wealth and privilege.

Okay, this just isn't true. I'm personally aware of two low-income Black kids for whom MVA was the option for kids with behavioral challenges that put their peers at risk. The idea that this is some sort of bespoke option available only to UMC Asian families, or families with means in general, is just not true.

The MVA no longer exists, so I have no idea what you are talking about, unless you are talking about OPTG, which is what Ye did as well.

There is currently a documented case of a troubled Black student with mental health issues who was pushed into the alternative learning, suspension and expulsion cycle I described that Alex Ye skirted: When Alexis Jones’s son, Jailyn, faced bullying issues at Clarksburg High School and made threats that got him suspended, his mother BEGGED MCPS to let him remain virtual so he would no longer be targeted by his peers at school. She was instead told that Jailyn HAD to report to Northwest and that online school was not an option.

https://bethesdamagazine.com/2024/10/28/family-files-lawsuit-against-mcps/

Jones was placed on a 10-day suspension and then expelled from Clarksburg in March 2020, but received educational services through an alternative educational program through MCPS. According to the lawsuit, the district returned Jones to a traditional high school environment over his mother’s objections, for the 2021-2022 school year.

Jones enrolled in Northwest on Aug. 25, 2021, and, according to the complaint, he was placed in classes with the same students who bullied him and had conflicts with him at Clarksburg. According to Moisette Intonya Sweat, a lawyer for Jones’ mother, all of the students were transferred to Northwest for a program for students with behavioral issues.

[Anonymous]

There is currently a documented case of a troubled Black student with mental health issues who was pushed into the alternative learning, suspension and expulsion cycle I described that Alex Ye skirted: When Alexis Jones’s son, Jailyn, faced bullying issues at Clarksburg High School and made threats that got him suspended, his mother BEGGED MCPS to let him remain virtual so he would no longer be targeted by his peers at school. She was instead told that Jailyn HAD to report to Northwest and that online school was not an option.

You are leaving out the part where Jones had access to a weapon and brought a loaded gun to school.

No part of me wants to excuse the threats that Ye made, but there is a material difference between a kid who admits homicidal thoughts to a counselor, and a kid who brings a loaded gun into an MCPS classroom.

[Anonymous]

I doubt this would have happened if Doug Nelson wasn't the principal and Dr. Bostic was. Shameful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

There is currently a documented case of a troubled Black student with mental health issues who was pushed into the alternative learning, suspension and expulsion cycle I described that Alex Ye skirted: When Alexis Jones’s son, Jailyn, faced bullying issues at Clarksburg High School and made threats that got him suspended, his mother BEGGED MCPS to let him remain virtual so he would no longer be targeted by his peers at school. She was instead told that Jailyn HAD to report to Northwest and that online school was not an option.

You are leaving out the part where Jones had access to a weapon and brought a loaded gun to school.

No part of me wants to excuse the threats that Ye made, but there is a material difference between a kid who admits homicidal thoughts to a counselor, and a kid who brings a loaded gun into an MCPS classroom.

Uh, wouldn’t Jailyn bringing a gun to his previous school due to unaddressed bullying give MORE reason for MCPS to allow Jailyn to remain virtual than not?

MCPS refused the ask because he was Black, low-income and his mother lacked a powerful attorney to force MCPS to make it happen, unlike Alex Ye.

[Anonymous]

Has anyone noted where this student went to middle school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone noted where this student went to middle school?

Frost

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

There is currently a documented case of a troubled Black student with mental health issues who was pushed into the alternative learning, suspension and expulsion cycle I described that Alex Ye skirted: When Alexis Jones’s son, Jailyn, faced bullying issues at Clarksburg High School and made threats that got him suspended, his mother BEGGED MCPS to let him remain virtual so he would no longer be targeted by his peers at school. She was instead told that Jailyn HAD to report to Northwest and that online school was not an option.

You are leaving out the part where Jones had access to a weapon and brought a loaded gun to school.

No part of me wants to excuse the threats that Ye made, but there is a material difference between a kid who admits homicidal thoughts to a counselor, and a kid who brings a loaded gun into an MCPS classroom.

Uh, wouldn’t Jailyn bringing a gun to his previous school due to unaddressed bullying give MORE reason for MCPS to allow Jailyn to remain virtual than not?

MCPS refused the ask because he was Black, low-income and his mother lacked a powerful attorney to force MCPS to make it happen, unlike Alex Ye.

Or...totally different scenarios resulted in different disciplinary actions. Jones had access to weapons and ammunition. That's a HUGE difference between him and Ye, who was already in treatment and who did not have access to weapons. It's just flat-out not the same thing and bringing up Jones without mentioning that he brought a loaded gun to school is wildly irresponsible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So, will they get prison for life?

No, nor should he. Ye was a minor when he wrote the "manifesto" and was already in treatment for what appears to be pretty significant mental illness. With time and treatment, and given that no acts of violence were actually committed, there is a good chance he can be a functioning member of our community again.

In a lot of ways, this is a best case scenario. From the reporting, it seems Ye was already in a residential therapeutic setting when the "book" was discovered, and had disclosed the plans to a HS counselor.

So here we have a young person essentially asking for help, school officials correctly identifying a real threat and taking action, and parents willing to fight for residential placement. Not to mention a lack of readily available weapons.

Think about the school shootings that did happen, all of the times school authorities brushed off a threat, or parents resisted treatment, or kept firearms in the home.

I know this is scary, but it's actually kind of a model case for what happens when the system works.

This only did not become a big news story since the parents don't own guns. I can imagine what would have happened if they did. This person needs to be in a psych facility and monitored and hopefully will not acquire a gun ever.

The part that's NOT being reported on in the press, is the extent to which Alex's parents used their wealth, privilege and the medical system to shield their child from the consequences of their dangerous behavior, allowing them to continue school through virtual school rather than forcing them to go to an alternative school or facing expulsion, as certainly would have been the case if they were lower income and Black or Hispanic. MCPS was complicit in this.

Complicit? Shouldn’t your issue be with other kids not being cared for as well rather than begrudging a mentally ill child not being sent to an alternative school? It sounds like these were very responsible (and yes, privileged) parents who worked with the system to protect everyone. Shouldn’t that be the goal for everyone? And the kid was prosecuted, btw. Parents seemingly and thankfully didn’t try to cover this up at all of our peril. What outcome did you prefer?

Yes, complicit. MCPS would not have given a lower income Black or Hispanic the "option" of virtual school as they did his parents. Alex got special treatment because of his wealth and privilege.

Furthermore, Alex and his parents are not sorry for what he did and they are not "responsible." They attempted to maneuver their child away from the natural consequences and would have gotten away with it, were it not for Ye's friend who turned him into the police. Ye's lawyer made the defense that his threats were not real and that they were just a story. This is similar to Jennifer and James Crumbley, who encouraged their son Ethan to lie to his school counselor and say that his drawings were merely drawings and that he didn't intend to hurt anybody. Later that day, he shot up his classmates.

Thankfully, the judge in Ye's case did not fall for that BS and rightfully found him guilty of threats of mass violence. There is nothing good or responsible about this family.

You don't sound well..

[Anonymous]

As controversial as it may be yes I did educate my children throughout their childhood in home and self defense practices using artillery and other non mechanical methods.
My children were properly taught self defense and home security defense ***in the event of a life threatening emergency only. ***
Jessica and Jai’lyn have been educated and in the home with registered weapons practically their whole lives since the moment I was eligible to possess them. They’ve been in the home.
For southerners like myself it’s right up with breathing to know what do in the event of a life threatening emergency. I am a avid gun rights supporter. I strongly believe in the 2nd amendment.🤷🏾‍♀️ ***I damn sure do exercise my right to have them for defense/home security purposes only. ***
Being that I am a nostalgic country gal lol… I prefer what I like to call “1 Hitta quitters” a.k.a. single barrel Rifles and shotguns
My children grew up in Maryland and my daughter is military personnel so they prefer hand guns and other automatic weapons like AR 15’s etc(blasphemy) way too excessive if you ask me🤷🏾‍♀️

There you have it!
Yes I do support *LEGAL** gun ownership!
I am a Southern single mother who highly believes in protecting my love ones and myself.

^^A public Facebook post not by Ye's parents but by Jones's mother. I do believe that it's bs that he couldn't do online school or go somewhere else. But the 2 cases are not the same. One was dreaming about mass murder to their guidance counselor and smiled while talking about the idea of killing elementary school students. The other was a sweet boy who had issues with his peers/bullies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As controversial as it may be yes I did educate my children throughout their childhood in home and self defense practices using artillery and other non mechanical methods.
My children were properly taught self defense and home security defense ***in the event of a life threatening emergency only. ***
Jessica and Jai’lyn have been educated and in the home with registered weapons practically their whole lives since the moment I was eligible to possess them. They’ve been in the home.
For southerners like myself it’s right up with breathing to know what do in the event of a life threatening emergency. I am a avid gun rights supporter. I strongly believe in the 2nd amendment.🤷🏾‍♀️ ***I damn sure do exercise my right to have them for defense/home security purposes only. ***
Being that I am a nostalgic country gal lol… I prefer what I like to call “1 Hitta quitters” a.k.a. single barrel Rifles and shotguns
My children grew up in Maryland and my daughter is military personnel so they prefer hand guns and other automatic weapons like AR 15’s etc(blasphemy) way too excessive if you ask me🤷🏾‍♀️

There you have it!
Yes I do support *LEGAL** gun ownership!
I am a Southern single mother who highly believes in protecting my love ones and myself.

^^A public Facebook post not by Ye's parents but by Jones's mother. I do believe that it's bs that he couldn't do online school or go somewhere else. But the 2 cases are not the same. One was dreaming about mass murder to their guidance counselor and smiled while talking about the idea of killing elementary school students. The other was a sweet boy who had issues with his peers/bullies.

That sweet boy was suspended twice for fighting and was on a behavioral improvement plan.

Look, what ultimately happened to him was tragic, but he just flat-out not a good comparison to Ye. The fact that he had free and easy access to firearms despite his mental health and behavioral struggles is shocking. I speak from experience. Like Jones's mom, I grew up in a place where it's normal to learn to shoot and my family had firearms for both self-protection and recreation.

As teens, what we did not have was access to those weapons. My brother had some mental health issues, and my parents knew that having a gun in the house is the biggest risk factor for successful self-harm. So the guns were in a safe and we had no access. That's responsible gun ownership, not the chest-thumping nonsense from the FB post above.