Utah Police Stop Potential Campus Shooting with 3D-Printed Gun

Utah Police Stop Potential Campus Shooting with 3D-Printed Gun

A man faces a criminal charge after police say he threatened to commit a mass shooting at a school using a 3D-printed gun.

  • Aug 30, 2018

A South Jordan, Utah man faces a criminal charge after police say he threatened to commit a mass shooting at a small South Salt Lake school using a gun made from a 3D printer.

Austin James David West, 23, was charged Aug. 9 in South Salt Lake Justice Court with making a threat of violence, a class B misdemeanor. On Aug. 8, West was arrested at his home after he talked with another student "about using a gun to shoot students at Broadview University," according to a Salt Lake County Jail report.

"The statements were forwarded to the university which caused the university dean to be fearful that a school shooting was actually going to take place. An email had to be sent to faculty and students warning them of the threat of a shooting at the school. The school chose to remain open," according to the report.

Broadview Entertainment Arts University is located at 240 E. and 2430 South.

West sent several texts to another student he has known for several years, stating that he would commit a shooting that “people would be talking about.”

"The text messages sent by the suspect reference killing people with a 3D printed gun so the gun could not be traced back to him.

The messages were allegedly sent on Aug. 7 between 7 and 11 p.m. The other student forwarded the messages to a school professor at 11:20 p.m.

The other student believed Austin could be capable of committing a mass casualty type event such as a school shooting, and told police that West had been "verbally aggressive" in the past. He also was fearful of his demeanor.

Police served a warrant at West's South Jordan home Aug. 8 where he lives with his parents and seized a 3D printer. His next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 26.

On Monday, a Seattle federal judge approved a motion to block a Texas man from releasing blueprints that could be downloaded online for 3D-printed guns.

Featured

  • Gaining a Competitive Edge

    Ask most companies about their future technology plans and the answers will most likely include AI. Then ask how they plan to deploy it, and that is where the responses may start to vary. Every company has unique surveillance requirements that are based on market focus, scale, scope, risk tolerance, geographic area and, of course, budget. Those factors all play a role in deciding how to configure a surveillance system, and how to effectively implement technologies like AI. Read Now

  • 6 Ways Security Awareness Training Empowers Human Risk Management

    Organizations are realizing that their greatest vulnerability often comes from within – their own people. Human error remains a significant factor in cybersecurity breaches, making it imperative for organizations to address human risk effectively. As a result, security awareness training (SAT) has emerged as a cornerstone in this endeavor because it offers a multifaceted approach to managing human risk. Read Now

  • The Stage is Set

    The security industry spans the entire globe, with manufacturers, developers and suppliers on every continent (well, almost—sorry, Antarctica). That means when regulations pop up in one area, they often have a ripple effect that impacts the entire supply chain. Recent data privacy regulations like GDPR in Europe and CPRA in California made waves when they first went into effect, forcing businesses to change the way they approach data collection and storage to continue operating in those markets. Even highly specific regulations like the U.S.’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) can have international reverberations – and this growing volume of legislation has continued to affect global supply chains in a variety of different ways. Read Now

  • Access Control Technology

    As we move swiftly toward the end of 2024, the security industry is looking at the trends in play, what might be on the horizon, and how they will impact business opportunities and projections. Read Now

Most   Popular

Featured Cybersecurity

Webinars

New Products

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.” 3

  • ResponderLink

    ResponderLink

    Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), an Alarm.com company and a global leader in gunshot detection solutions, has introduced ResponderLink, a groundbreaking new 911 notification service for gunshot events. ResponderLink completes the circle from detection to 911 notification to first responder awareness, giving law enforcement enhanced situational intelligence they urgently need to save lives. Integrating SDS’s proven gunshot detection system with Noonlight’s SendPolice platform, ResponderLink is the first solution to automatically deliver real-time gunshot detection data to 911 call centers and first responders. When shots are detected, the 911 dispatching center, also known as the Public Safety Answering Point or PSAP, is contacted based on the gunfire location, enabling faster initiation of life-saving emergency protocols. 3

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure. 3