An Ohio judge doled out a unique punishment after a teen allegedly planned a terror attack targeting a synagogue. In addition to other stipulations, the boy must write a book report about a diplomat credited with saving the lives of thousands of Jews during WWII.
Early reports indicate that the Stark County Sheriff's Office responded to a call in early September regarding a 13-year-old boy who was involved in “concerning conversations” on a social media platform that included numerous threats toward Temple Israel in the city of Canton.
The boy, who was not named due to his age, pleaded “true,” which is the juvenile equivalent of guilty. Last Friday, the boy was charged with misdemeanors of inducing panic and disorderly conduct.
According to court documents, the boy “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.”
The report said that Stark County Family Court Judge Jim James suspended a 90-day sentence for the teen at the Multi-County Juvenile Attention Center and instead gave him one year of probation that included the following:
- No unsupervised use of the internet[.]
- 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.
Stark County Sheriff George Maier said that the county has a “zero-tolerance policy when it comes to threats made against our community.”
“Every threat is investigated thoroughly with the seriousness it deserves,” he said. “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.”
WATCH:
Since October hate crimes in the U.S. targeting Jews have skyrocketed, stoked by the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terror group Hamas. Earlier this month, FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Senate Judiciary Committee during a testimony that threats have reached a fever pitch.
The FBI director said “the biggest chunk of those are threats against the Jewish community, but there are of course attacks … against others as well,” pointing to attacks against Muslim targets.
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