Teen accused of planning multiple Colorado Springs school shootings pleads guilty to assault
ELBERT COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO)-- A former Academy District 20 student appeared before a judge in Elbert County today. She's accused of plotting a series of mass shootings, both at schools and at churches.
William Whitworth, 19, who identifies as "Lily," was previously arrested back in April of 2023, after her sister called law enforcement and tipped them off of of her plans to carry out mass shootings at three D20 schools and churches.
Whitworth pleaded guilty to assault in the second degree, a charge that was added her list of charges as the result of the plea agreement offered by the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office. Court documents show that this charge is related to Whitworth's intent to cause injury to students and/or staff at Timberview Middle School using a deadly weapon, namely an explosive device.
KRDO 13 Investigates asked the 18th JD DA's office why they offered this plea agreement to Whitworth. Eric Ross, the office's Media Relations Director, said it ensures a potential prison sentence and means a trial, without the guarantee of a conviction, isn't necessary.
"It's a lot easier to prove a crime at trial when a crime actually occurred, a physical threat of violence actually occurred," Ross said. ""Had we taken this case to trial, there's no guarantees we would have got a conviction. There's a risk involved with that. So under this plea agreement, it gets us a guilty conviction and a felony conviction at that."
Whitworth's multiple counts of attempted murder were dismissed as a part of the plea agreement. Her guilty plea includes a stipulation that Whitworth committed an extreme risk crime with a deadly weapon.
Elbert County deputies said they found a manifesto that named several D20 schools as potential targets.
Whitworth was supposed to appear before a judge earlier this year, but a scheduling error pushed those dates back.
Her bond was initially set at $75,000 but was raised to $750,000 shortly after her arrest. That happened after a jail employee said Whitworth indicated she would continue her plans if she were bonded out.
Whitworth is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan 19, 2024. An Elbert County Judge will now decide if Whitworth will receive prison time or a potential probation sentence.
The normal range of prison time for a guilty plea of 2nd-degree assault is five to 16 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections.
"I think parents and I think the school district and the community should be really grateful that we were proactive in stopping something versus having to talk about an event after a tragedy occurs," Ross said.
