A Montpelier High School student who had been investigated by police for making a “potential threat” allegedly told another student that “if he were to come shoot up the school,” he knew where to access the building and spoke of needing to “upgrade to an AK-47,” according to court documents made public Tuesday.
The documents were released after the court issued an Extreme Risk Protection Order that forbids the teen from possessing any dangerous weapons for six more months. A temporary order was issued last month, when police confiscated weapons and ammunition from the teen’s home. The student did not contest extending the court order.
Officials said the 18-year-old student, who is named in court documents, is no longer attending classes at the school. VTDigger is not naming the student in part because he has not been charged with a crime.
Washington County State’s Attorney Rory Thibault said Tuesday afternoon that the police investigation has been completed. The prosecutor said that he “anticipates reviewing the case in the near future” to determine if any charges would be filed.
Asked if there was any evidence uncovered that the student intended to follow through with a school shooting, Montpelier Police Chief Brian Peete replied, “There’s no indication that we could see that he intended to carry through. There were no overt steps or actions that he took.”
Judge Scot Kline signed off Tuesday on the agreement reached between Washington County Deputy State’s Attorney Bridget Grace and Austin Gray, an attorney representing the 18-year-old student, which will extend the order.
Additional documents related to the police investigation included a five-page filing by Montpelier Police Sgt. Kevin Moulton, who wrote that on the afternoon of May 17, an assistant principal at the high school, Jennifer Wall-Howard, contacted police.
Wall-Howard reported a student had come to her with concerns about comments that another student had made referencing firearms, according to Moulton.
“The student told Wall-Howard that (a student) was talking about if he were to come to shoot up the school, (that student) would know where to access the school and could have the entire downstairs before the upstairs even knew what was going on,” Moulton wrote in the filing.
“The student also informed Wall-Howard that (the other student) mentioned needing to sell his current firearms to upgrade to an AK-47,” Moulton wrote.
“High school staff was also made aware (the student) is reported to carry a firearm in the glove box of his vehicle,” Moulton wrote.
The student who reported the conversations later told police that they had “seen bullet casings in (the student’s) vehicle,” and that the student in question “said he brings a gun everywhere with him.”
They also told police of how the student offered details of how he would prop the school’s exterior door open so he wouldn’t be locked out, “and then he would grab his AR-15 with an extended magazine and kill everyone downstairs before the kids upstairs could leave,” Moulton wrote.
Police launched an investigation and the temporary protection order was issued against the student May 17, the same day the school administration had contacted police.
However, it wasn’t until a week later that Montpelier police alerted the public, sending out a press release announcing it was investigating a “potential threat” at the school.
The news of the probe came a day after a gunman shot and killed 19 children and two adults at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
Peete, the police chief, said at that time he didn’t alert the public earlier because he did not want to compromise the ongoing investigation and police were also working to determine if what had been reported was a “credible” threat.
When the temporary order was issued, the teen had to relinquish to police his hunting rifle, “an AR-style .22 rifle,” magazines and ammunition, according to police.
At the start of the court proceeding Tuesday morning, Gray told the judge that he and his client had reached a “stipulation,” agreeing to extension of the order for six months, the longest amount of time allowed under the law. The prosecution can later seek another extension.
An Extreme Risk Protection Order allows a prosecutor to petition a court to keep dangerous weapons away from a person who poses a risk to themselves or others. The “red flag law” that led to the protective orders was adopted in 2018 after an alleged school shooting plot in Fair Haven was thwarted.
Peete said Tuesday afternoon that plans to hold a virtual town hall meeting to talk about the police response to the “potential threat” tentatively set for 5 p.m. Thursday. He expected a link to access that meeting will soon be posted on the Montpelier Police Department’s Facebook page as well as on Front Porch Forum.
