Alleged school shooter bailed to family home; walks from court with parents

The 15-year-old’s mother has agreed to quit work in order to monitor her son 24/7 as he’s granted leave to return home.

A teenager, accused of taking his dad’s rifles to his former school and firing three shots, has walked from a Perth court in the company of his supporters as they prepare to return to their family home.

Appearing for the first time in person in Perth Children’s Court on Wednesday, the 15-year-old, who can’t be named, had his bail conditions changed after lengthy debate between his defence counsel and the prosecution.

The boy will be under his mother or father's supervision at all times, and can only leave his northern suburbs home for court-related appointments. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Anthony Anderson

It means he’ll no longer be staying in a bail hostel, where he’s been for the past 41 days, and will instead be returning to his family home in Perth’s outer-northern suburbs, under the supervision of his parents.

For the first time since the alleged incident, the boy walked with supporters as he left court, declining to speak to media.

It was revealed in court his mother will quit her hospitality job in order to be with her son 24 hours a day.

His mum or dad will also need to accompany him for any appointments with various custodial agencies and support services handling his case.

The boy allegedly took two rifles from his father’s gun safe on May 24, before driving his parents’ car to Atlantis Beach Baptist College and using one of the rifles to fire three rounds.

Two of them pierced buildings which had people inside at the time.

The boy appeared before Magistrate Stephen Wilson on Wednesday, where defence lawyer Michele Lord said it was time for the boy “to go home.”

“[The boy] feels he’s able to speak with his parents more than youth workers,” Ms Lord told the court, who noted his parents are “very dedicated and willing to learn more about how to manage their son’s mental health needs.”

Even state prosecutor Brad Hollingsworth said the boy has “behaved entirely appropriately” during his time in the bail hostel.

However, Mr Hollingsworth was also adamant in his concern, without outright opposing the bail amendment.

“The parties are still a long way away from understanding what happened here,” he told the court, “we need to err on the side of caution.”

Body-worn camera footage of the moment a 15-year-old boy was arrested over allegedly firing at a school in the northern Perth suburb of Two Rocks. Picture: Supplied / WA Police

The two Savage Arms rifles allegedly taken by the boy on May 24, an Axis 243 and a Mark II FSS 22, were legally owned by his father, and kept in a gun safe at the same home to which the boy will return.

But Mr Hollingsworth assured Magistrate Wilson “there will be no more firearms in that house; there are no firearms in that house; there will hopefully never again be firearms in that house.”

He did indicate the state’s intention to add another charge of endangering the life, health, or safety of a person at the boy’s next hearing in the same court on August 9.

The boy only spoke once to confirm to Magistrate Wilson that he understood the new bail conditions.

In his last appearance, Magistrate Alana Padmanabham put the boy in custody of a bail hostel, where he would be under surveillance and have limited, monitored access to phones and the internet.

He’ll have similar conditions at home, with no access to the internet or a smartphone with internet access.

He’s also not allowed within 100m of Atlantis Beach college, in the northern Perth suburb of Two Rocks, where he was withdrawn as a student by his mother the day before the alleged shooting.

Originally published as Alleged school shooter bailed to family home; walks from court with parents