Teen jailed for what is thought to be nation’s first school shooting
A teenager has been sentenced to juvenile detention for what is believed to be Australia’s inaugural school shooting incident. Last May, the 15-year-old from Perth discharged three shots from two rifles at the Atlantis Beach Baptist College.
During the ordeal, staff and students sought refuge in cupboards and under desks until law enforcement eventually apprehended him. In issuing a three-year sentence, the judge noted that “good luck” had prevented a tragic outcome.
Fortunately, no injuries were reported in the shooting, which marks a first in Australia. Neither legal professionals nor Perth Children’s Court Judge Hylton Quail could find precedent for a similar case nationwide.
The defendant’s lawyer, Simon Freitag, urged Judge Quail to consider a non-custodial approach, citing his client’s depression and undiagnosed autism spectrum disorder at the time of the incident. Freitag also highlighted the teenager’s distress over a failed relationship and malicious rumors circulating about him.
Two of the bullets fired by the teenager struck school buildings as Atlantis Beach Baptist College, serving students aged six to 16 in Perth’s northern suburbs, entered lockdown mode.
The teen subsequently contacted the authorities, expressing his initial intent to harm others and himself. However, he abandoned this plan out of concern for his siblings and awaited police intervention.
The perpetrator had retrieved two hunting rifles and ammunition from his father’s gun cabinet before driving to the college’s parking lot to carry out the shooting on May 24, 2023.
According to local media, one teacher recounted her fear to law enforcement, texting her fiance while in hiding to express her love.
State prosecutors said one student “ran for his life”. Another lay down on the grass behind a backpack – a teacher who saw the student thought they had been shot.
At a plea hearing last week, the court was told that in the 18 days before the incident, the boy had searched on the Internet about subjects such as school shootings, gun deaths, and the age of criminal responsibility in Western Australia. He searched for phrases such as “Are there school shootings in Australia” and “What happens to mass murderers in Australia”.
On the social media app Discord, he also discussed shooting guns at the school with a friend. The night before the incident, he warned the friend not to go to school – but the friend did not believe him as he had never carried out his past threats.
Last December, he pleaded guilty to multiple charges. They include endangering the lives of staff and students, discharging a firearm to cause fear, possessing firearms and ammunition, and driving without a license.
His lawyer Mr Freitag said at the time that the mental impact on those at the school would weigh heavily.
“I do need to say out loud the very obvious point that this has caused significant fear and distress,” he said.
