Judge to Bomb Plotter's Attorney: Charges Will Be Upheld

The lawyer of the teen arrested for plotting to blow up Freedom High School will not get his way.

Defense attorney Norman S. Cannella Sr. had argued Jared Cano had neither the knowledge nor correct materials to carry out such a devastating plan and requested the charges be dropped. But Hillsborough Circuit Judge Kimberly Fernandez ruled Monday that point is moot, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The charges against Cano will be upheld.

Cano was arrested last August after authorities received a tip from an unnamed student about Cano’s intentions to wreak havoc on the first day of the 2011-2012 school year at Freedom — the same school that had expelled him.

Cannella also argued Cano only mentioned the threat to the student and not the school itself, making it "a threat in a vacuum," according to a July article from the Tampa Bay Times.

In addition to shrapnel, tubing and timing devices, authorities found at Cano’s home a diary with "very specific" and "minute-by-minute" details for killing specific administrators as well as students who happened to be nearby. 

Previous Coverage on Jared Cano: