GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Stone Mountain teen arrested and charged with a felony for making terroristic threats was denied bond in a hearing before a Gwinnett County judge on Friday.
According to an arrest warrant obtained by 11Alive, Judge William Brogdon of the Gwinnett County Magistrate Court deemed 17-year-old Nathan Bacher a danger to person or community in denying him bond.
The warrant states that Bacher threatened “that he had a list of fellow students that he was going to ‘shoot’ on the last day of school.”
It’s not clear if police ever obtained such a list. Bacher was arrested at his home around 2:30 a.m. on May 23.
Bacher’s family has posted a GoFundMe page to raise money for legal costs, and on it they claim Bacher was provoked by bullies at school who, among other things, told him, “you are from Arab (sic) you must be a terrorist.”
According to the GoFundMe post, Bacher is a Christian. His father is from Ethiopia, a majority-Christian nation in East Africa, the father’s Facebook page says.
“We believe wholeheartedly that Nathan is innocent,” the post says. “We have made sacrifices so that our son could have access to better education. We are heartbroken about this situation and that our son is going through this.”
More than 100 people were said to have shown up at Bacher’s bond hearing on Friday to show support. While no individuals spoke at the hearing on his behalf, a number brought letters to the judge.
Bacher was attending Providence Christian Academy in Lilburn. The school said he had no previous incidents of this nature, nor had he ever reported any bullying. The family’s GoFundMe stated he only ever told his brother about bullying.
Providence Christian Academy’s Head of School Sean Chapman said the school did not pursue disciplinary action because Bacher was already leaving for academic reasons.
Chapman told 11Alive “we have to take anything like this seriously” because of the types of high-profile violence that have been committed at schools around the country.
A statement from the school said: "We take the safety of our students and staff very seriously. When the administration learned about the threats, we contacted local police who investigated and determined there was enough cause to move forward. They have been handling the situation since that time."
Bacher will next face another bond hearing in Superior Court. There is no date for that hearing yet.
The GoFundMe has raised more than $13,000 from nearly 300 people since it was posted last week.
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