Suspect's lawyer calls Wilson High gunfire 'extremely dumb'

PORTSMOUTH

Keith Elliott was smiling and giving fellow students high-fives just before firing shots into the air at Woodrow Wilson High School three weeks ago, his lawyer said in court Monday.

It was "extremely dumb, extremely reckless," Rebecca Robinson said. But nobody was injured, she added, urging a judge to keep the case in juvenile court.

But Judge William S. Moore Jr. said a video he watched during the hearing showed students who appeared to be terrified fleeing the cafeteria where shots rang out.

After hearing testimony from several witnesses about the April 28 shooting, Moore sent the case to Circuit Court, where Elliott, 15, will be tried as an adult.

The testimony revealed new details of what happened when gunfire erupted, sending teens running for their lives. Students sent text messages to parents, who rushed to a school that was by then surrounded by police.

Elliott had been suspended from school at the time of the incident, but he entered through a locked door after pointing a gun to get a student to open it, according to testimony.

Leon Taylor, an in-school suspension coordinator, said Elliott walked into his classroom around 12:15 p.m., seeming agitated. He heard students say Elliot had a gun, and then he spotted it.

Cursing, Elliott said he was tired of people picking on him, the faculty member said.

"I just felt kind of blank," Taylor said, adding that he made no movements.

Some of the students thought the gun was a fake. Others said it was real, and students ran closer to Taylor's desk, Taylor said.

Within seconds, Elliott left the classroom, and Taylor radioed security. He said he heard three shots.

Security guard James Flippens testified he heard the call and saw Elliott, who said: "They're not going to mess with me today, are they?"

The security guard said he told the teenager to put the gun down, but Elliott walked away smiling. Flippens said he followed him down the hall to the cafeteria and saw him give high-fives to a couple of students.

Elliott pointed the gun at a crowd, then shot it straight up, Flippens said.

Elliott left the building, and Flippens noticed he had left the gun behind on a table, he said. Flippens identified the weapon as a 9 mm handgun.

Elliott was apprehended outside.

Detective Robert McDaniel testified that Elliott told police he didn't want to hurt anyone, and he just wanted to show a teacher with whom he had problems that he was not a "punk."

McDaniel also testified that Elliott told him and other detectives that he had smoked marijuana and had been drinking earlier in the day.

The teenager's lawyer brought in a school staff member to play security camera footage of Elliott high-fiving students.

Prosecutors asked the same witness to play other parts, including the scene of students running.

Earle C. Mobley, Portsmouth’s commonwealth’s attorney, pointed out that when the teen shot into a school wall, he had no idea if anyone was on the other side.

The prosecutor said the court needed to balance the needs of the juvenile with the safety and needs of the community, urging that the case be moved to Circuit Court. The school, he said, "should be a sanctuary of learning."

Elliott's lawyer, Robinson, argued for the case to stay in juvenile court, as a probation officer recommended. Robinson cited a history of problems the teen had endured, including custody issues, physical and sexual abuse, and neglect.

"This child needs help," Robinson said.

Robinson also expressed concern about the "overwhelming" publicity the case had gotten. The judge had denied her motion to close the hearing.

"The biggest point is if he had wanted to hurt someone, he could have," she said in a closing argument.

Elliott faces charges of brandishing a firearm, three counts of discharging a firearm in an occupied school, use of a firearm while breaking and entering the school, and underage possession of a gun.

After the juvenile court hearing, two assault and battery charges against Elliott from a separate incident were heard in General District Court. Those charges grew out of an altercation in a classroom at Wilson five days before the shooting.

A separate judge in that case dismissed one of the charges after hearing the evidence and convicted him of one reduced charge of simple assault.

The 15-year-old was still being held in juvenile detention as of Monday evening.

Janie Bryant, (757) 446-2453, janie.bryant@pilotonline.com