Trial date set for two teens charged with burning Pride flag at Bay View High School

Two of the three teens accused of removing and setting fire to a Pride flag from Bay View High School in Upper Tantallon this spring are facing trial in Halifax Juvenile Court.

RCMP announced last month that three young people had been charged in connection with the April 19 incident.

Two 17-year-old boys and a 16-year-old girl, all Bay View students, were arraigned and arson in juvenile court on May 25. Their identities are protected by the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

The boys pleaded not guilty in court last week and will stand trial together in October.

The Crown agreed to refer the charges against the girl to restorative justice, a process that allows people accused of criminal offenses to take responsibility for their actions but avoid conviction.

The charges against the girl will return to court in September for a status report. If she completes the terms of her restorative justice contract, the charges will be dismissed.

When RCMP announced the allegations on May 5, they said investigators had determined that a young person, assisted by two others, had taken down a Pride flag inside the school and burned it once they were outside the school.

The incident was captured on video by one of the teens, RCMP said.

“Information collected by investigators, in consultation with the Hate Crimes Unit of the Halifax Regional Police, indicates that the offense was motivated by hatred based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression,” the RCMP release said.

“The RCMP takes hate incidents very seriously and condemns criminal acts against any identifiable group.”

The Halifax Regional Center for Education said last month that the students involved in the incident had been disciplined under the county’s code of conduct.