A judge set bail at $250,000 each for two 18-year-old men accused of bringing loaded guns to Mountain View High School on Monday after threatening a shooting to target a student there.
Mekhi J. Parker and Azaviaer D. Johnson, both of Vancouver, appeared Tuesday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, felony harassment and possession of a dangerous weapon on school grounds. Parker also appeared on attempted first-degree assault, and Johnson appeared on an allegation of altering identifying marks on a firearm.
Senior Deputy Prosecutor Toby Krauel had asked the judge to set bail at $1 million each. The teens’ defense attorneys called that request “excessive” and “astronomical.” The teens’ families were in the courtroom and appeared tearful at seeing them appear virtually from the Clark County Jail.
Judge Suzan Clark ordered GPS monitoring for Parker and Johnson if they post bail, and prohibited them from going near the school. They’re scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 23.
Vancouver police responded about noon Monday to the school, 1500 S.E. Blairmont Drive, after a school official reported that a student had notified the administration of a social media message about threats of a shooting at the school. In a Snapchat message, Parker threatened to show up and shoot outside the school to cause a lockdown. The message seemed to be targeting a specific student who was seen speaking to Parker’s girlfriend at school, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Parker formerly attended Mountain View, and the school official said he still had several friends at the school, along with his girlfriend, court records state.
Officers interviewed Parker’s girlfriend, and she told them Parker had learned of an interaction she had with a boy at lunch Friday. She said Parker immediately began texting her, threatening the student. She thought everything had settled down until she got the threatening message from Parker on Monday, according to the affidavit.
She said she immediately told the dean of students about the message, and she asked her mother to pick her up from school. She said she knew Parker had access to firearms from photos he’d shown her before. They also shared their locations with each other, and she said she could see he was near the school, court records state.
As a Vancouver police officer prepared to leave the school to talk to the student who was the target of the threats — and who was not at school Monday — the officer saw three people heading toward one of the school’s side doors. One of the school’s security officers then told the officer that one of the people was Parker, the affidavit states.
The officer placed Parker under arrest and seized a bag Parker was carrying. Inside the bag was a firearm and two loaded magazines, according to court records.
When police interviewed Parker, officers said he admitted to sending the messages, but he said he never intended to carry out the threat. He said he carries a gun to protect himself. He said he came to the school to meet a friend, but officers said he could not explain why he was approaching a door to be let inside, the affidavit states.
Officers also searched another teen with Parker, identified as Johnson, and they found he had a firearm in his waistband. The gun’s serial number had been altered, and Johnson has a previous felony conviction prohibiting him from possessing a gun, police said, according to the affidavit.
Johnson is also not a student at the school. He denied knowing of Parker’s threats, court records state.
Police initially detained a third teen and found he had brass knuckles. Officers released that teen, who was a student at Mountain View, to his parents, and they referred an allegation of possession of a dangerous weapon on school grounds to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, according to police spokeswoman Kim Kapp.
Investigators eventually talked to the student who was the target of the threat, and he said he believed the threat was credible.
In a letter sent to parents of Mountain View students, Principal Charles Anthony said, “Especially considering recent events, we know that incidents like this are highly concerning. Please know we take these situations very seriously, and the safety of our students and staff is a priority here at Mt. View High School.”
