On Tuesday, T.J Lane, the teen being charged with opening fire on his schoolmates in an Ohio high school, wore a T-shirt with the word "killer" on it during his court sentencing. The 18-year-old entered the court normally, however as Geauga County Judge David Fuhry arrived, he took off his dress shirt to reveal his white T-shirt with word "killer" handwritten on it.
The judge says he did not see the word "killer" scribbled on Lane's shirt, or else he would have ordered him to change his clothes. Lane wore a similar shirt on Feb. 26, 2012 , the day he fired 10 shots into his school cafeteria killing three students in a small town east of Cleveland. Last month Lane pleaded guilty.
"The court was unaware of the shirt. The court did not notice the shirt. Had the court noticed the shirt, the court would have immediately stopped the proceedings, adjourned the court and the court would have ordered the defendant to put on proper attire," said Judge Fuhry in a statement issued after the hearing.
Lane's defense lawyer, Ian Friedman, said he was unaware that his client was wearing the shirt in advance. "The defense would like to again extend its prayers and thoughts to all those who have been affected by this terrible case," Friedman said.
In addition to wearing the "killer" shirt, Lane, also directed a crass statement toward the families of the victims. "The hand that pulled the trigger that killed your sons now masturbates to their memory. (Expletive) all of you," he said, flipping his middle finger at the gallery.
Victims' relatives addressing the court expressed rage at Lane. One relative told Lane she hated him while another referred to him as an "evil, disgusting animal."
Lane was sentenced to three life sentences because he wasn;t eligible for the death penalty since he was 17 years old at the time of the shootings.
Following the shootings, Lane told deputies he didn't know why he fired the shots but said, "It was something I chose to do."
Fuhry described the shootings as a "merciless rampage," adding "We haven't been provided a clear motive or even a murky one."