Former Wall Township Schools Student Behind Violent Plot Charged In Juvenile Court

The former Wall Township Schools student whose violent plot to harm scores of his classmates was uncovered by authorities was charged with a trio of offenses in juvenile court Monday, authorities said.

The boy, whose name is being withheld because of his age, was charged with harassment, creating a false public alarm and making terroristic threats, according to Charles Webster, spokesman for the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.

A status hearing was set for next month before Judge James J. McGann, sitting in Freehold, Webster said. 

Unlike adult court cases, juvenile court hearings are closed to the public.

The boy faces a possible sentence of two years probation, Webster said.

District officials in April found a note containing general, but violent threats and removed the student from the Central School and he was never allowed to attend the Intermediate School this September. He has been attending an alternative education program, officials have said.

The note led to a police investigation in which a computer was seized, and a plan that named 40 district students at the Intermediate School and some celebrities as possible targets for violence and was found, authorities have said.

Wall Police at first called the plan “elaborate,’’ and compared it to a “Columbine’’ or “Newtown’’ mass casualty event. The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office later said those comparisons were inaccurate and called the plan “non-specific.’’

“We believe it was more of a fantasy-type thing he had,’’ Wall Police Lt. John Brockriede has said. “Not something he was capable of actually carrying out.’’

The incident sparked a community discussion about school security. In response, the school district has said it will put in  unarmed security guards at the entrance to each school, along with a system to check visitor’s driver’s licenses upon entry. The district is currently seeking candidates to fill the lobby guard positions.