Features

Accused teen gunman draws support nationwide

The Associated Press
Friday April 20, 2001

SAN DIEGO — A 15-year-old boy accused of killing two students and wounding 13 other people at his high school is drawing support from around the nation from strangers who see him as a victim of bullies who should not be tried as an adult. 

Supporters created at least two Web sites and sent hundreds of letters and e-mails to Charles “Andy” Williams through his attorneys since he allegedly opened fire at Santana High School in Santee, said Linda Miller, a spokeswoman for the San Diego County Public Defender’s office, which represents him. 

“There’s a lot of people who don’t think he should be in jail,” said Steve Trotto, a real estate investor from Shrewsbury, Mass., who is a founder of the Save Andy Williams Coalition. 

Trotto and other coalition members plan to gather for a rally Friday morning outside the courthouse in El Cajon, where a judge will hear arguments on Proposition 21.  

The juvenile justice initiative obligates prosecutors to charge Williams as an adult in the case. 

Williams is charged with 28 felonies, including two counts of murder for the March 5 attack in which he allegedly opened fire on the suburban campus near San Diego with his father’s .22-caliber revolver. He reportedly told several friends about his plans the weekend before the shooting. 

Students said he was relentlessly teased for being skinny and having big ears. He’d recently been in a fight and had his skateboard stolen twice. 

“People called him freak, dork, nerd, stuff like that,” student Jessica Moore said at the time. 

Lawyers for Williams plan to argue that Proposition 21, adopted by 62 percent of voters last year, violates the state Constitution’s requirement that initiatives address a single subject. 

The district attorney’s office maintains the initiative is valid because all its component parts address juvenile crime. 

Superior Court Judge Herbert Exarhos is expected to issue a ruling April 27. 

Friends and family of the two boys shot and killed at Santana, Bryan Zuckor and Randy Gordon, have attended previous court hearings and spoken publicly about their anguish. 

Zuckor’s family also has circulated a petition in support of trying Williams as an adult. 

Zuckor’s aunt, Carol Lynn Briens, said Thursday that she has collected more than 1,200 signatures on her petition. She said she wasn’t surprised by the show of support for Williams because many people had refused to sign her petition. 

“Everyone is trying to save Andy Williams, and I understand that because I’m a mom,” Briens said.  

“But if they try him as a juvenile, I think that sends the wrong message.” 

Briens said she knew of the planned rally and would ignore it Friday when she makes her way to court. 

“Everyone has their own opinion and I respect that,” she said. 

The district attorney’s office was aware of plans for the rally, spokeswoman Liz Pursell said. 

“We would hope that people would be concerned about the victims,” Pursell said. 

The public defender’s office has not solicited any support for Williams and has no connection to the planned rally, Miller said. Gifts that are sent to the boy, including books and skateboard magazines, can’t be forwarded to him in juvenile hall, she added. 

The letters can be forward, but Williams has expressed interest in letters only from family and friends, Miller said. 

The level of support is a surprise, she said. 

“It’s quite unusual that so many people have expressed support for someone in this situation,” she said. 

Trotto, 35, said he received e-mails and letters from about 350 people around the world, with many saying they sympathized with Williams because of the bullying he reportedly endured. 

“I went through a lot of the same abuse,” Trotto said. “I was beat up. I was bullied. My car was vandalized.” 

Trotto plans to move from Massachusetts to San Diego to monitor the trial and coordinate opposition to Proposition 21. 

“I don’t believe children should be tried as adults,” he said.