The Ohio 17-year-old accused of the latest school shooting tragedy in the US chose his victims at random, his prosecutor said on Tuesday, as details of his troubled family life emerged.
T.J. Lane spoke only to confirm his birth date and answer: “Yes I do” to basic questions when he appeared in a juvenile court for a preliminary hearing, hours after a third Chardon High School victim died of his wounds.
Judge Timothy Grendell imposed a gag order preventing attorneys from speaking about the case and banning the media from taking photographs of the suspect’s face, while ordering Lane to be detained for a further 15 days.
“Once in custody, Lane was advised of his rights, he confessed to taking the .22 pistol to school along with a knife,” prosecutor David Joyce told the juvenile court in Chardon, near Cleveland. “He admitted he fired 10 rounds into a group of students, that he did not know the students and that he chose them randomly.”
Speaking to reporters outside, Joyce dismissed speculation about bullying and said Lane would be tried in an adult court on at least three charges of aggravated murder, provided the juvenile court judge found “probable cause.”
“This was the effect of one lone gunman. He chose his victims at random. This is not about bullying. This is not about drugs,” the prosecutor said. “This is about someone who’s not well, and I believe in our court case we’ll prove that and we’ll make sure justice is done.”
A picture began to emerge of a troubled boy who lived with his grandfather, his legal guardian, after his dad, who had a history of domestic violence and served time in prison, was warned by police to stay away.
Court records, pored over by the local media, showed both his father and mother had been charged with domestic violence against each other between 1995 and 1997.
The father was later charged with assaulting a police officer and served time in prison after holding a woman’s head under running water and bashing it into a wall, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported, citing court records.
Lane allegedly opened fire on Monday on a group of teenagers in the cafeteria of Chardon High School, sending terrified students running for their lives, before fleeing the scene, chased by a teacher.
Shocked residents of the close-knit community of 5,100 struggled to comprehend how the tragedy could have happened.
Crowds gathered late on Tuesday at the Church of Saint Mary in Chardon to hold a candlelit vigil after the tragic loss of three local teenagers — Danny Parmertor, 16, along with Russell King and Demetrius Hewlin, both 17 — their lives ended prematurely and with no explanation.
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