MYRTLE BEACH (WPDE) -- A family court judge decided Christian Helms, 15, the teen accused in the Socastee High School shooting will be tried as an adult on one count of attempted murder, two counts of possession of incendiary device, and two counts of intent to use an incendiary device.
Police say Helms brought bombs to the school and shot at a resource officer last September.
Helms showed no reaction when the decision came down.
Judge Georgia Anderson said the Supreme Court spelled out the factors to be considered for a family court judge to waive a juvenile case to adult court. She said the charges were serious and the incident happened in in a violent premeditated manner. Judge Anderson said she believes Helms can be rehabilitated with time, but she had to take into account the protection of the public.
28 witnesses testified and 22 exhibits were presented over three days of testimony.
Defense Attorney Russell Long says he plans to have Helms plead guilty now that the case has made it to adult court. He said its just a matter of trying to work out a sentence with the solicitor assigned to the case.
NewsChannel 15 and CarolinaLive.com had not previously named Helms because he was still charged as a juvenile. Now that he is charged as an adult, we are releasing his name.
We'll be posting more details throughout the day.
Read about day 1 testimony
Read about day 2 testimony
Read about day 3 testimony
(WPDE and CarolinaLive.com contributed to this report.)
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