A California teenager who killed two classmates and wounded 13 others in a school shooting rampage has tearfully apologised as he was jailed for 50 years.
Charles Williams did not tell the court why he opened fire with his father's handgun at Santana High School on March 5th, 2001, but he said he felt "horrible about what happened".
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Charles Williams after being sentenced to 50 years for murder
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"If I could go back to that day, I would never have got out of bed," the 16-year-old said, his voice breaking.
Judge Herbert Exarhos called the attack vicious and fiendish, but noted that Williams had endured a difficult life at home and had no previous criminal convictions. He said the question of why Williams committed the attack remains unanswered.
The teenager's father has said his son, then 15, was the victim of frequent bullying after moving to Santee from Twentynine Palms, a desert community east of Los Angeles.
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But Deputy District Attorney Kris Anton said the harassment Williams said he suffered, such as having his skateboard stolen or being punched in the chin, did not justify the shooting rampage. "The defendant is the bully. He took a gun to school and shot innocent kids," he said.
In June, Williams pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and 13 counts of attempted murder. The assault at the 2,000-student campus killed two boys, aged 14 and 17, and wounded 11 other students, a teacher and a campus monitor.
AP