NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas, July 3 (UPI) -- A Texas teen has told a judge he was "stupid" but never planned to hurt anyone when he made comments online about shooting school children that put him in jail.
In a letter to District Judge Jack Robison, Justin R. Carter, 19, of New Braunfels said his Facebook posting was just so much trash talk, the San Antonio Express-News reported Wednesday.
"What I said was terrible, mean and downright stupid," Carter wrote to the judge about his Feb. 19 post. "The misunderstanding was that I wasn't trying to scare anyone, I was trying to be witty and sarcastic."
Carter was indicted in April on a third-degree felony, charging he threatened "to shoot up a kindergarten, watch the blood rain down and eat the beating heart out of one of them."
His undated letter was filed with the court May 28.
The teenager's defense attorney, Donald Flanary III, charges that police overreacted in charging Carter.
"He wasn't threatening any individuals," the attorney said. "The context of the comment is sarcastic."
New Braunfels police Lt. John Wells said the rash of recent school shootings was a factor in Carter's arrest.
"We take any threats of that nature seriously. We don't know if they're going to carry it out or not," Wells said.
Police found no weapons in a search of the youth's home.
Carter remains in jail in lieu of $500,000 bond. His next court hearing is scheduled for July 16.
