A girl has been detained for allegedly planning a mass shooting at her high school on Valentine’s Day, despite the community previously raising funds for her following a severe accident. Trinity Shockley is facing charges of conspiracy to commit murder, intimidation, and conspiracy to commit intimidation.
The 18-year-old is accused of plotting an attack on Mooresville High School and has been taken into custody without bond at Morgan County Jail in Martinsville, Indiana, reports the Mirror. Shockley, who was hit by a drunk driver in 2022 while waiting for her school bus, told investigators she had been bullied since the accident, according to court documents.
The crash resulted in multiple injuries including a fractured femur, fractured arm, sprained ACL, two brain contusions, and a web compression fracture. At the time, local media reported the school community supported her, raising over $12,000 (£9,700) for medical expenses.
“They’ve been really responsive,” her aunt Angela Altmeyer remarked following the tragedy. “They’ve been wanting to send cards and whatever they can do.”
The FBI’s anonymous reporting system alerted the local sheriff to the potential threat after receiving a tip-off that someone was planning an attack, had access to an AR-15 rifle, and had ordered a bulletproof vest, as per ABC News reports.
It came to light the individual had an obsession with Nikolas Cruz, the mass murderer who perpetrated the Parkland, Florida high school massacre on February 14, 2018. In this attack, Cruz brutally took the lives of 14 students and three staff members.
The informant referred to their acquaintance as “Jamie”, a grade 12 student who was transgender, according to details from court papers. Snapchat messages forwarded to the tip-off service included one in which “Jamie” labelled her anticipated activities as “Parkland part two”, the documents say.
“I’ve been planning this for a YEAR,” she declared in a message that was shown in the record. Subsequent to receiving the tip-off, local law enforcement alongside FBI agents executed a search warrant at her residence that very night.
According to reports by Fox59, they discovered signs she was scheduling a mass shooting and promptly placed her under arrest. At her home, items including AR-15 magazines, ammunition, and a soft-armoured vest were reportedly found.
However, Shockley later informed detectives her remarks concerning the supposed assault were made in jest, claiming no access to firearms, as unveiled by court files. Yet, Shockley’s online activity depicted images of the magazines, complimentary comments about Cruz, and frightening declarations about conducting a school shooting.
In the wake of the detention, Mooresville Schools communicated via a statement their knowledge of the situation and affirmed that Shockley “will not return to the school.”