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Net blamed for new Columbine High School threats

Does this sound like a feeble excuse to anybody?

A Florida teenager was suffering from 'Internet intoxication' when he allegedly threatened a Columbine High School student online, his lawyer claimed yesterday. The teenager, 18-year-old Michael Campbell, is accused of sending a message via AOL threatening to 'finish what begun' at the Colorado high school last April, when a dozen students and a teacher were gunned down. Campbell denies sending the email. But his lawyer, Ellis Rubin, told reporters his client was so intoxicated by the Web that he was actually hypnotised by it when he made the threat last month, the BBC Online reported. Rubin said his client meant no harm. The trial date has been set for 28 February, but the venue is as yet undecided, a federal judge in Denver said it would have to be changed due to publicity surrounding the case. Campbell faces five years in jail and a $250,000 fine if convicted. Witness reports from the Columbine massacre stated that the gunmen, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, used the Web to research and plan the 20 April attack, apparently posting threats on the Internet beforehand.® Related stories: US senate moves to ban bomb info on Web

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