Trial to begin for Beach teen accused of plotting school attack

VIRGINIA BEACH

The jury trial of a former Landstown High School student accused of plotting to kill dozens of his classmates in a terrorist attack on the school was set to begin this morning in Circuit Court.

Philip Charles Bay, now 19, faces 11 counts of manufacturing or possessing an explosive device with intent to cause harm, one count of possessing a weapon of terrorism with intent to terrorize and two counts each of possessing or using a sawed-off shotgun or rifle, soliciting or recruiting another for an act of terrorism and committing, conspiring or aiding and abetting in the commission of an act of terrorism.

Bay was 17 at the time of his arrest on April 6, 2009, 14 days before officials say the attack was to take place, but is being tried as an adult.

At issue in the trial, which is expected to last at least five days, will be Bay's mental state at the time the alleged offenses occurred, according to a Circuit Court order for a mental evaluation of Bay. Bay's lawyer, James Broccoletti, intends to "put in issue his sanity at the time of the crimes charged," according to a notice filed in Circuit Court.

Bay has had at least two mental evaluations since his arrest, and Broccoletti has subpoenaed several counselors and psychiatrists to testify, according to court records.

Also likely to take the witness stand are Bay's two co-defendants, who, at the time of their arrests in April 2009, were a 16-year-old Landstown student and a 15-year-old former student. Friends and his attorney have credited the latter with preventing the attack by reporting the plan to authorities. Both are now 17.

Bay's co-defendants both pleaded guilty last year in juvenile court to possessing or using a sawed-off shotgun and possessing weapons of terrorism. Juvenile and Domestic Relations Judge Randall Blow convicted them of the first charge but delayed sentencing them or making a decision as to their guilt on the latter charge.

Bay faces more serious charges than the other two teens because he appears to have been the leader, Commonwealth's Attorney Harvey Bryant, who is prosecuting the case, has said.

The investigation began April 5, 2009, when fire Investigator Don Moss received a tip that a Landstown High student had made a threat against the school, according to a search warrant affidavit filed in Circuit Court. Moss interviewed Bay and led a search of his home, a town house on Saville Garden Way about three miles from Landstown.

There, authorities said they seized 28 explosives, including pipe bombs and Molotov cocktails, and materials for making more, according to Circuit Court documents. Bay was arrested the next day.

They also searched his co-defendants' homes and confiscated a gun scope, computer equipment, journals and notebooks, videos made by the three teens and a hit list with students' names, according to court documents and statements from authorities shortly after the search. From Bay's locker, they took a calendar " 'counting down the days' until April 20th," the anniversary of the Columbine, Colo., school massacre, according to an intake report filed in Circuit Court. The attack at Landstown was slated to take place on the anniversary, Bryant has said.

Bay was obsessed with the Columbine shooting, in which two students killed 13 people and injured 21 others before committing suicide, Bryant has said.

Jurors will be asked to decide whether Bay is guilty, not guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity. To prove not guilty by insanity, an attorney typically has to convince the jury that the defendant had a mental illness or defect that made him or her incapable of understanding right from wrong, kept the defendant from understanding the "nature, character and consequences" of his or her actions or gave the person an irresistible impulse to commit a criminal act, said Andrew Sacks, a defense attorney in Norfolk. The nucleus of such a defense is the testimony of an expert who has evaluated the defendant, he said.

The insanity defense is uncommon. In South Hampton Roads between 2007 and 2009, only two people were found not guilty by reason of insanity - one killed his roommate after a fight and another decapitated his 5-year-old son.

A defendant found not guilty by reason of insanity is evaluated by the state to determine whether he is sane enough to return to society or requires further detention and treatment, Sacks said.

If found guilty, Bay could face life in prison, Bryant has said. If found not guilty, he'll go free for the first time since his arrest.

Bay's trial before Circuit Judge William R. O'Brien is slated to start this morning with jury selection.

Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com