Valencia Student Pleads Not Guilty To Weapons Charge In Alleged ESPN Threat
SAN FERNANDO (CBSLA.com) — A Valencia man accused of threatening an attack against local schoolchildren plead not guilty Tuesday to felony gun possession charges.
KNX 1070's John Brooks reports Eric Ting Yee and his father, Roger, are both accused of illegal possession of an H&K M-94 assault weapon.
Podcast
The 21-year-old Yale University student stood in the back of the San Fernando Superior Court with a mask over his face to avoid spreading a case of chicken pox alongside his father, 62, who also entered a not guilty plea.
The charge stems from comments made by the younger Yee on an ESPN article about $279 Nike shoes named for basketball star LeBron James, stating that he was "watching kids and did not mind murdering them."
He was arrested Sept. 17 at his parents' home in the 23000 block of Edenton Place, which overlooks Santa Clarita Elementary School and Arroyo Seco Junior High School, sheriff's officials said.
Lawyer David Wallin said Yee was just quoting lines he had heard in a movie and making a comment about yuppies - not a criminal threat.
"He thought he could say that because parts are in a movie, and because he was making a political statement," said Wallin. "
Wallin added that the assault weapon in question belongs to Yee's father and has not been fired in 27 years.
Yee is free on bail, while his father was released on his own recognizance. Both are expected back in court next month.
