Valencia Man Accused Of Threatening To Murder Kids On ESPN Faces Weapons Charge

SAN FERNANDO  (CBS/AP)—A Valencia man who was arrested for allegedly threatening to murder children on a sports website was not charged Wednesday for making those comments.

Instead, the District Attorney charged Eric Yee, along with his father, with possession of an illegal assault rifle, which was found in the suspect's home.

Yee, a 21-year-old Yale dropout, was taken into custody on Monday for making the death threats on an ESPN blog about Nike shoes named after Miami Heat star, LeBron James.

He admittedly made the comments after watching the film, "American Psycho," starring Christian Bale.

Yee's attorney, David Wallin, said his client was never guilty of the criminal threats.

"He was guilty of 'felony stupid' for making stupid remarks he never should have made. However, they weren't a crime. That's what we believed all along. We sent the DA's office three letters to establish those facts, and I believe they did the right thing not to file the charge," he said.

Wallin also indicated the assault weapon belonged to Yee's father.

"(Police) arbitrarily came across a weapon that was 27 years old, bought by the father, and has never fired one time in 27 years. My client, his son, has never touched it. Didn't even know where it was," he said.

A judge reduced Yee's bail to $100,000 from $1 million.

He's due back in court Oct. 16, as his arraignment was postponed.

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• ESPN