Authorities: Teen’s Knife Attack At School Was Planned — (The Indy Channel)

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NORTH VERNON, Ind. – A 16-year-old student planned his knife attack on a boy at a southern Indiana high school and had told others about it, authorities said.A judge on Tuesday ordered that the Jennings County High School sophomore remain in a juvenile detention center on a preliminary charge of attempted murder until at least next week, when a hearing is planned on whether he would face adult charges over Monday’s attack.

The injured student, 16-year-old freshman Lester Peacock, suffered a cut of about 4 inches to his neck. His condition was described as stable Tuesday at Columbus Regional Hospital.

Detectives testified during Tuesday’s court hearing that the sophomore had told them he would not be upset if Peacock died.

Jennings County Prosecutor Gary Smith said the teen told investigators he had contemplated the attack ahead of time.

“So there was apparently some degree of planning involved,” Smith said.

The teen’s mother said in court that he was under psychiatric care for depression and on medication. She said, however, that he missed medication doses in the days before the attack during a study hall attended by about 120 students.

Michael Bushong, superintendent of the school district about 60 miles south of Indianapolis, said he was disappointed that students had not reported the boy’s threats.

“Some students had heard about this over the weekend and had not thought that he meant it,” Bushong said.

No other students were threatened in the attack and the sophomore fled from the 1,525-student school before officers found him hiding at an apartment complex north of the town about 90 minutes later, police said.