July 7, 2001

A Maryland man who was charged with sending threatening messages to two East County students shortly after the Santana High School shootings pleaded guilty Friday to charges that are expected to bring him no more than one year in jail.

Patrick Smith entered a guilty plea to a felony count of making a terrorist threat and a misdemeanor count of making an annoying or harassing communication, said prosecutor Michael Groch.

Smith is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 24. Although he could be sentenced to as much as three years in prison, Superior Court Judge Judith Hayes indicated she would sentence him to no more than one year in jail, said Groch.

Smith, 18, was arrested at his home in Walkersville, Md., on March 9 and accused of sending the messages to two teens on March 7.

Sent over an instant message program on a computer, the messages came just two days after, prosecutors say, sophomore Charles "Andy" Williams fired shots at Santana that killed two students and wounded 13 people.

Williams is being held without bail while his lawyers contest legal aspects of Proposition 21, which enables prosecutors, rather than judges, to order juveniles tried as adults.

Smith's messages said he would "finish what Andy started" and also made statements threatening to rape and shoot the student he was communicating with.

At a preliminary hearing in May, Smith's lawyer argued that his client has psychological problems, and that while his conduct was objectionable, it was not criminal. Smith originally faced four charges; a judge agreed with defense attorney Stephen Cline and dismissed two charges.