A mother turned her son into the police after she suspected him of launching an attack at his high school.
Nicole Schubert called law enforcement on her son after she found a plan to shoot up his high school in Washington in his journal.
The son’s detailed plan began with a desire to kill his mother before attacking his school.
Schubert spoke with Good Morning America about how she made a difficult decision to save the lives of others, but also her son, after 21 people died at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Schubert’s son wrote about carrying out a mass shooting on the 21st anniversary of the Columbine shooting.
He was going to kill his mother and her boyfriend at 5:00 AM and then head to school at 12:20 PM.
According to a police report, he wrote: “Kill everyone possible, fight to the death or kill self after maximum damage has occurred.”
After reading what her son was writing about her, she was devastated. “That’s my child, I gave birth to him. It hurts a lot, it still hurts.”
She confronted him about his words, and he claimed that his notes were just a story.
The mother believed that her son would have been safer in jail if he had followed through on the plans in the diary.
“If there’s a possibility to save even one person, one child, I think it’s worth it,” Schubert said. She said her son’s life is back on track thanks to the intervention.
He pleaded guilty to harassment and threatening to bomb or harm property. He later underwent a mental evaluation and completed a rehabilitation program and community service for his crimes.
Schubert said she has no regrets about turning him in. She decided to share her story to help other parents.
“Stay in their business,” she urged, “even if they don’t like it. They’re not gonna like it, but as parents, it’s our job to know what our kids are doing. Just be aware, and watch for signs. Kids will normally tell you by their actions when something is wrong.”
She further explained: “Obviously we can’t control our children’s actions all the time, who can? But there are signs that you know something’s not right… I was in his room [asking] ‘what are you doing, where are you going?’ all the time, and he hated it, but he’s alive, and everyone’s alive.”
The 20-year-old has a job and plans to go to university after completing his evaluation.