The case against a Texas teenager who was jailed after an argument from League of Legends spilled over onto Facebook is going to move forward. A judge denied the motion to dismiss the case against 19-year-old Justin Carter this week, as reported by Texas news site KENS5.
Carter was arrested in March after he said on Facebook following a League of Legends match that he was going to “shoot up” a school and “eat their still, beating hearts,” according to his father.
He reportedly followed up these comments with “LOL” and “JK.” A woman in Canada saw his comments and informed the police, who arrested Carter for making a terrorist threat.
Carter’s comments came just months after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut, where 20 children and six adults were killed. An “anonymous Good Samaritan” posted Carter’s $500,000 bail in July.
His lawyer said Carter’s comments were “clearly” sarcastic, and prosecutors would have known that if they examined the entire Facebook comment thread, he argued. A new date for the case has not been announced.
Carter faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.