FORMER SOKA UNIVERSITY STUDENT CONVICTED OF THREATENING MASS SHOOTING ON YOUTUBE AND IN EMAILS

Case # 17HF1442

Date: April 19, 2018

FORMER SOKA UNIVERSITY STUDENT CONVICTED OF THREATENING MASS SHOOTING ON YOUTUBE AND IN EMAILS

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A former Soka University (Soka) student was convicted today of threatening a mass shooting on YouTube and in emails to a staff member.

Defendant

Charges

Maximum Sentence

Court Date

David Kenneth Smith, 40, Los Angeles

Convicted by a jury today of:

  • One felony count of criminal threats

Three years in state prison

Sentencing

June 1, 2018, 9:00 a.m.

Department C-30, Central Jail, Santa Ana

Circumstances of the Case

  • Smith is a former student of Soka who posted videos on YouTube while holding firearms, praising the perpetrators of recent mass shootings, and discussing the possibility of carrying out an attack.
  • On Oct. 31, 2017, Smith sent emails to a staff member at Soka that threatened violence and included a link to one of his videos, which shows the defendant lying in his bathtub with a firearm on his chest. In the video, Smith talks about his conflicts with Soka administration while he was attending, and voices his aggression towards the university.
  • The staff member reported the messages and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) investigated this case.
  • OCSD arrested Smith at his Los Angeles apartment on Nov. 2, 2017. Smith possessed nine loaded firearms at the time of his arrest.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Brett Brian, Special Prosecutions Unit