U.S. woman pleads not guilty to conspiring in Tumbler Ridge mass shooting

Explainer

An American woman accused of conspiring in the deadly mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., has pleaded not guilty in a Seattle court. James Cody Bryant, 30, entered the plea at an arraignment hearing on Thursday after being indicted last week by a grand jury. Bryant, who goes by the name Melody and uses she/her pronouns, is charged with conspiracy to murder persons in a foreign country. The trial is scheduled to begin on Dec. 21 before U.S. District Judge Kymberly K. Evanson. Bryant has been denied bail and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.

The charges stem from the Feb. 10 shooting in which 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed eight people. The victims included Van Rootselaar's mother, Jennifer Strang, 39, and half-brother, Emmett Jacobs, 11, in their home. She then drove to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and killed five students and an educational assistant before fatally shooting herself as police closed in. An RCMP investigation revealed the shooter had attempted a brief livestream on Twitch as she headed to the school, which was watched by one account belonging to Bryant, according to the FBI.

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What is Bryant accused of doing?

The FBI's 41-page criminal complaint alleges Bryant colluded with Van Rootselaar online for months, primarily on the messaging app Discord. The complaint says Bryant agreed to record a livestream of the planned murders and post it online, testing the stream quality and assuring the shooter it "looks solid." Bryant is also accused of providing tactical advice, suggesting locations for the attack and stating the shooter "should have a handgun." According to the document, Bryant reassured Van Rootselaar she had "solid plans." The complaint further alleges Bryant wired money to the shooter, which was used to buy shoes for the killing spree and a lighter for an improvised explosive device.

On the day of the shooting, the FBI alleges Bryant did nothing to stop the attack. After Van Rootselaar disclosed she had killed her family, Bryant is accused of walking her through how to start a car so she could get to the school. The criminal complaint includes a photo from that day, described as showing someone from the shoulders down holding a rifle and wearing black fishnet stockings and a miniskirt. The complaint states, "A few moments later, Van Rootselaar told Bryant that she went live with the stream and had just killed her family members at their residence." Van Rootselaar allegedly told Bryant, "I'm going now. (for real). Live. I shot them."

How did the two know each other?

Bryant and Van Rootselaar met three years ago on the chat-roulette style website Omegle, according to the FBI. They kept in touch sporadically during the first year until Van Rootselaar was institutionalized after being deemed a danger to herself. The two reconnected after she was released, but the shooter was institutionalized a second time after setting her room on fire. Bryant told the FBI the shooter became increasingly angry and suicidal, often speaking "about planning to use guns to murder her family members and others because she felt she had been mistreated." Bryant said they never met in person. When Mounties learned Bryant was a resident of Bellingham, Wash., they notified the FBI.

What happened at the arraignment?

Bryant appeared at the hearing wearing an olive green or tan prison-issued shirt and pants, with her hair down to her waist. She was escorted in by a U.S. court marshal, hands clasped together, and gave a slight smile and nod to two friends sitting in the gallery. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Greenberg read the charge in court. Bryant did not speak, but her lawyer entered a not guilty plea on her behalf. Magistrate Judge Michelle Peterson presided over the brief hearing, informing Bryant of the potential penalties. Bryant's public defender, Greg Murphy, spoke briefly with the two people in the gallery after the proceeding.

In a previous court filing arguing against Bryant's detention, Murphy and fellow public defender Dennis Carroll said there was no evidence their client "has ever communicated with any other person as deeply disturbed as Van Rootselaar." They also pointed to the seven-month delay between Bryant being interviewed by the FBI and her arrest in October, stating that "if that danger were real, the government would not have left Ms. Bryant in the community for seven months." The arguments were unsuccessful and Bryant was denied bail. The accusations against Bryant remain unproven. Her trial is set to begin on Dec. 21.

With files from The Canadian Press, CityNews and CBC News