Trevor P. Fattig, charged by Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd with the felony of making terroristic threats, waived his right to contest a planned Platte County R-3 school district administrative hearing to expel Fattig from the school district.
“I was contacted by the attorney for the school district. By policy, the school board has to give a student an opportunity to contest an expulsion hearing,” said Brian Costello of Kansas City, Fattig’s attorney who is defending Fattig against the felony criminal charge.
“My client does not want to return to school at Platte County anyway, so he waived his right to contest the expulsion,” Costello said.
Because of federal law relating to privacy of minors and students, school district officials nor the attorney for the school district, John R. Cady, were able to confirm Fattig’s expulsion from the Platte County R-3 school district.
“It’s totally obvious that my client (Fattig) was expelled from the Platte County school district,” Costello said.
Sean M. Amos, a classmate of Fattig’s, was also charged by prosecutor Zahnd with felony terroristic threat. Amos’ attorney, Jeffrey S. Eastman, of Gladstone, declined to speak with The Landmark. Amos’ enrollment status in the school district could not be confirmed, though it would seem unlikely his status would be any different than that of his co-defendant.
Fattig and Amos, both 17, have both pled not guilty to the charges. Fattig’s case is scheduled for a routine docket call on Thursday of this week and Amos’ next docket call is scheduled for July 6.
A docket call is an administrative procedure during which opposing counsels update the judge on the status of their trial preparation.
Both have bonded out of jail but remain under electronic shackling/house arrest. Zahnd alleges that Amos and Fattig told several classmates that they planned to detonate explosives and shoot fellow students and administrators at the Platte County R-3 High School on April 20 this year, which was the seventh anniversary of the Columbine school shootings.
