Teen Who Plotted School Bombing Runs for Mayor

Joshua Hoggan says he's human, 'like the rest of us'
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 13, 2013 3:25 PM CDT
Teen Who Plotted School Bombing Runs for Mayor
Joshua Hoggan answers questions about his mayoral candidacy for Roy, Utah on Monday, June 24, 2013, in Roy.   (AP Photo/The Deseret News, McKenzie Romero)

Is it time to forgive and forget? An 18-year-old running for mayor in Utah sure hopes so, the AP reports. Joshua Hoggan served six months in juvenile detention for planning to blow up his school just two years ago, but assures voters in Roy, Utah, that he's a changed man. "People should trust me because I have proven one thing: That I am human," said Hoggan said in an email. "I have made mistakes, just like the rest of us."

But the bomb plot was well-organized. Scheming with a classmate, Hoggan perused school blueprints, visited Columbine high school to learn about security measures, and logged hours on a flight simulator to plan their escape by stolen plane. Hoggan insists he was misguided. But Roy Mayor Joe Ritchie says he's "not so sure how sincere he is. I think he's in it for the notoriety." Does he actually has a chance to win? "I sure hope not," says Ritchie. (More Columbine school massacre stories.)

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