CANTON, Ohio — The 13-year-old boy accused of planning a mass shooting at the Temple Israel synagogue in Canton has been sentenced to a year of probation, according to Stark County court records.
On Friday, the teen pleaded "true," the juvenile equivalent of guilty, to the misdemeanor counts of inducing panic and disorderly conduct. Stark County Family Court Judge Jim James suspended a 90-day sentence for the teen at the Multi-County Juvenile Attention Center, giving him a year of probation with the following conditions:
- No unsupervised use of the intenet
- Continue to undergo counseling with a licensed therapist
- Read a book about Swiss diplomat Carl Lutz, credited with saving over 62,000 Jews during World War II. The teen is then ordered to write a book report to the juvenile probation department
A pre-trial hearing for the teen had been set for this Wednesday.
The Stark County Sheriff's Office says that deputies responded to a Plain Township residence on Sept. 7 for a report of a 13-year-old boy engaging in "concerning conversations" on a social media platform. Those conversations included numerous threats toward the Temple Israel on 30th Street NW in Canton.
The following statement is seen in the court documents complaint for the inducing panic charge:
"(Name redacted) did create a detailed plan to complete a mass shooting at the Temple Israel on the Discord platform which was reported to law enforcement and required an immediate investigatory response and notification of public individuals and agencies including the school system in which caused significant public alarm within those agencies."
Discord is an online chat-based server for group chats through verbal/video/text communication.
“We stand by a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to threats made against our community," explained Stark County Sheriff George Maier. "Every threat is investigated thoroughly with the seriousness it deserves. We work diligently to ensure that those responsible are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Protecting our community is a responsibility we bear with the highest level of commitment and vigilance."
3News also spoke to Kelly Fishman, executive director of the Cleveland Anti-Defamation League. To her, this is part of a larger issue: kids being exposed to online hate speech.
"We don't have a rash of 12 and 13 and 14-year-olds who all of a sudden have a massive amount of hate for one group of people," she explained. "They have bought into a rhetoric that makes it seem like it's the right choice."
The boy's family, whom we are not naming and who did not want to go on camera last week, expressed similar concerns when reached for comment. They described the teen as a "good, smart kid" who went to church every Sunday but was "most definitely influenced" by older men on Discord.