Student gets probation for ‘kill list’ note

SF freshman admitted to writing note that included map of school

SANTA FE -- A former Santa Fe High freshman will be on probation for a year after he admitted in court Wednesday that he wrote a note describing a “kill list” of students and teachers at the high school.

Aaron Encinias was originally charged with conspiracy to engage in terrorist activity after someone at Santa Fe High found the note that contained a school map and a list of potential shooting victims on Nov. 7. The police said the note also included racist and homophobic comments.

Encinias initially told police it was meant to be a prank. But a Santa Fe Police Department spokesman later said Encinias told investigators he intended to follow through with the plan but didn’t have a gun.

The teen, about 15 years old, on Wednesday admitted to interfering with the educational process, a misdemeanor, at a hearing in Santa Fe District Court. A charge of disorderly conduct was dropped.

“I admit to writing the note,” Encinas said in court. “It fell out of my backpack at school and someone found it. It had some bad things on it. A lot of people were scared, and I apologize for what I did.”

His admission and sentencing comes amid renewed national concern about school shootings after 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz killed 17 students or teachers at his former school, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Fla., earlier this month.

“Your case is similar to what other juveniles experience, and unfortunately they go beyond what you did,” Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer told Encinias. “They actually carry it out, and certainly we’re all still in mourning from the Florida case.”

Marlowe Sommer also said that the schools need to do a better job of addressing bullying. Encinias told police he had been bullied by people on the kill list.

The judge said Encinias’ father, who was present in court, needed to keep a closer eye on his son.

“You have some serious work to do, and so does your father,” Marlowe Sommer said to the boy. “You and your father are going to have to engage in some serious conversations.”

Encinias was initially permanently expelled from school. But his lawyer, Tom Clark, said after the Wednesday hearing that it was later changed to a long-term suspension, meaning he can return to public school next January. Clark said Encinias is currently enrolled at an alternative school and is still on track to graduate on time.

Two other students, Santiago Trujillo and Julian Carter, were charged for conspiring with Encinias for not reporting what they knew about the note, but their charges were dropped. Carter has said he thought it was a joke, and he is also on long-term suspension. Trujillo also was suspended for not reporting the note, but the length of his suspension is unclear.