Teen accused of making threats, having knife at school

A 17-year-old Port Washington High School student accused of threatening to hurt people, writing in a text message that he would “change lives” in one of his classes and bringing a 10-inch knife to school last week is charged in Ozaukee County Circuit Court with making terrorist threats.

In addition to that felony, the student, a senior who lives in Wauwatosa, is charged with a misdemeanor count of having a dangerous weapon at a school.

Although the student is charged as an adult, Ozaukee Press is not naming him at this point in his case because he is a minor.

According to a criminal complaint, at 9:35 a.m. Monday, Jan. 6, Port High Principal Rachel Biertzer called police officer Jason Bergin, who serves as the Port Washington-Saukville School District  school liaison officer, to the school and told him that a student had informed a staff member that the defendant sent concerning text messages on Saturday, Jan. 4.

In those messages, the defendant threatened to hurt others and wrote that he would “change lives” in his Advanced Placement European history class.

He was in that class when staff members took him to the office and searched his backpack. In it, they found a 10-inch kitchen knife, the complaint states.

Bergin reviewed text messages sent by the defendant, including ones that read, “I have a knife in my backpack and nobody knows it is missing. In AP Euro I will change lives.”

“I hate people so much, man.”

“Yeah, I’ll just physical harm them instead no big deal.”

When the recipient of the messages responded by telling the defendant he didn’t really want to hurt people, he wrote back, “No, I do actually I think.”

When asked why he wanted to hurt people, the defendant wrote, to “get the anger out.”

The defendant also sent text messages about engaging in self-harm, according to the complaint.

When interviewed by Bergin, the defendant admitted to sending the messages and said he wrote them out of frustration and didn’t intend to hurt anyone at the school, the complaint states.

When Bergin asked him why he had a knife in his backpack, the defendant said he meant to take it out of the bag before coming to school but forgot.

Confronted about the statements he made about hating people and wanting to harm them, the defendant said he didn’t mean anything by those comments.

While talking with the defendant, Bergin noticed he had signs of self-harm and requested the help of the Ozaukee County Human Services Department. The defendant was taken to a hospital for treatment before being booked in jail.

During a Friday, Jan. 10, court hearing, Ozaukee County Circuit Judge Steve Cain set the teenager’s bail at a $1,000 signature bond and ordered him not to have contact with Port Washington-Saukville School District facilities except to attend an expulsion hearing under the supervision of a parent.

Making terrorist threats is punishable by a maximum 1-1/2 years in prison and two years of extended supervision.