Boy Denies Guilt in Bomb Charge
A 15-year-old boy pleaded not guilty Friday to a charge that he brought a facsimile bomb with him to Valencia High School, the district attorney’s office said.
The boy, whose name was withheld because of his age, will remain in custody at Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, district attorney’s spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
The boy will be tried as a juvenile on the felony charge, Gibbons said.
Authorities were forced to evacuate nearly 2,600 students from the school Wednesday morning after the device was discovered in a locker room trash can. The boy, who allegedly assembled the device, was arrested later that day.
Investigators have not yet determined whether the device contained explosives.
A second 15-year-old boy was believed to have dropped the device into the can, authorities said. He was released to his parents Wednesday and he has not been charged.
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