Rigby school shooter still in state custody

The 12-year-old girl who shot and wounded two students and a janitor at Rigby Middle School last year is still in state custody — and could be until she’s 21.

The juvenile shooter will remain in the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections’ custody until her 19th birthday or until the Custody Review Board deems her rehabilitated, Nate Sunderland of EastIdahoNews.com reported Tuesday. If not deemed rehabilitated by the time she’s 19, the girl could be held until she’s 21.

Information about the ruling appears in newly unsealed court documents obtained by EastIdahoNews.com earlier this year, Sunderland reports. All names, except those of law enforcement, were redacted in the documents.

The juvenile shooter, who was a student at the school when she brought a pistol there and fired it last year, was charged with three counts of attempted first-degree murder, the documents show. She later pleaded guilty to all three charges and entered a plea agreement.

The shooter will remain on probation for 36 months after her release, the documents show.

Jefferson County Prosecutor Mark Taylor told EastIdahoNews.com that the ruling was the best possible outcome under the law.

“Juvenile correction is all about rehabilitation and helping these people get what they need in order to no longer be a threat to themselves or society,” Taylor said.

Go here for more on the shooting, which left no casualties.

More reading: Watch for more this week on responses from state and school leaders on last week’s school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, which left 19 students and two teachers dead.  

Devin Bodkin

Devin Bodkin

EdNews assistant editor and reporter Devin Bodkin is a former high school English teacher who specializes in stories about charter schools and educating students who live in poverty. He lives and works in East Idaho. Follow Devin on Twitter @dsbodkin. He can be reached by email at [email protected].

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