NORTHFIELD, Minn. (AP) — A judge has dismissed some of the most serious charges against a former Minnesota college student who police and prosecutors feared was plotting a campus shooting.
Waylon Kurts, of Montpelier, Vermont, who was then a student at St. Olaf College in Northfield, was charged last April with conspiracy to commit second-degree assault, conspiracy to commit threats of violence, making terroristic threats, and a less serious count of conspiracy to commit theft. Prosecutors alleged he was “planning a mass casualty event.”
But Rice County Judge Christine Long this week dismissed two of the felony counts against Kurts, citing a lack of evidence that he was conspiring with anyone to commit assault or threats of violence, KARE-TV reported.
Kurts, who has pleaded not guilty and is free on bail, has maintained that he is a recreational firearms enthusiast and was just exchanging text messages on that topic with a like-minded friend.
Tennis umpire banned for life for manipulating scores and gambling
S. Korea's opposition party overwhelmingly leads exit polls in parliamentary elections
Boeing plane makes emergency landing after engine cover falls off
Israeli army kills over 200 Palestinians, arrests 1,000 in Gaza hospital: Hamas
Rita Ora flashes some cleavage in a scoop
Across China: 'Village CEOs' Transforming Rural Dreams into Reality
Southeast Asian Livestreamers Shine at Cross
Knowledge Contest Promotes Protection of Women's Rights
Doctors thought I had acid reflux
Shanghai Strengthens Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency
A politician running for mayor in northern Mexico is killed, the 16th hopeful slain over June vote
District Promotes Family Education