LSU bomb threat suspect waives preliminary evidence exam

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - The man accused in the LSU bomb threat appeared in court Monday, where he waived his formal court appearance and accepted the charge against him.

The move by William Bouvay, 42, of Baton Rouge is not an uncommon occurrence according to legal experts.

Bouvay, suspected of calling in a bomb threat that caused the LSU campus to be evacuated on Sept. 17, waived his legal right to a preliminary evidence exam by Judge Lou Daniel. Bouvay also fired his court-appointed attorney and hired Maurice Hall as counsel for the trial.

"I just got hired by Mr. Bouvay and some of the information in his file, I haven't been able to take a look at it, but just hoping for a good outcome on both sides," said Hall.

District Attorney Hillar Moore said he will not discuss a plea at this point, other than as charged. He said his office is ready to move forward with this case.

"We're prepared to go," Moore said. "I know the assistant DA has already prepared this case. He's ready to go, proceed to trial. Any evidence, any documents, we'll give it to them. We just want to get this matter heard and tried and let a judge or jury decide."

Federal charges against Bouvay were recently dropped, so the state of Louisiana case could move forward. The state case carries more time in prison.

"So, he's looking at 30 years and maybe a little more. It's a real serious crime," Moore added.

The trial is scheduled to begin April 22.

Bouvay is charged by the state of Louisiana with communications of false information of a planned bombing on school property.

A conviction could carry up to 40 years in jail.

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