On Monday morning in Erie County Supreme Court, both parties agreed to have University at Buffalo student Jacob Cassidy remain under a Red Flag order for six months. The order prevents him from possessing guns.
The 21-year-old was placed under a temporary Extreme Risk Protection Order, also known as the Red Flag Law, last week. The order was issued on Thursday after students reported allegedly hearing Cassidy make comments on Wednesday about intending to "shoot up the school" the following day.
A Red Flag order allows police to remove all firearms from the house of a person under the order, which police did on Thursday.
On Monday morning, both parties agreed to extend the temporary order for six months, while an ongoing investigation by the Erie County District Attorney plays out. As of Monday morning, Cassidy has not been charged with a crime.
"Obviously, the allegations are troubling," said Judge Emilio Colaiacovo. "In this day and age, in the heightened sense of awareness that we're in, the court erred on the side of caution, in granting the [temporary Extreme Risk Protection] order."
Cassidy declined to comment when approached by BTPM NPR outside the courtroom. His attorney Daniel J. Henry, Jr. told BTPM NPR his client is a "very good person."
"I could tell you for one, one thing, Mr. Cassidy is not a danger. He's not a violent person. He's not a threat to the community, to the University of Buffalo, to their student body, to their administration," Henry said outside the court room. "He's never had any prior violence or any violence associated with him. He's from very good family. He's a very good person. So, these allegations are a surprise to everybody right now."
Cassidy also cannot buy or attempt to buy or possess a gun while under the order.
However, Judge Colaiacovo remarked that while the court erred on the side of caution, he found the mention of Cassidy's affiliation with the campus club Young Americans for Freedom a "gratuitous inclusion of something that I did not find to be entirely relevant."
Young Americans for Freedom was founded in the home of conservative author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1960. They're now estimated to have more than 400 chapters in high schools and college campuses. Speaking events hosted by YAF chapters have triggered protests in the past, including at UB in 2023 with Daily Wire commentator Michael Knowles.
"I found that disturbing, almost raising my suspicion if [police] were targeting this individual because of his political beliefs," Colaiacovo said.
According to exhibits filed in court, the students who reported the threat provided a photo of the person they overheard, which police then used to identify Cassidy by comparing to body camera footage.
Cassidy does have a valid New York State Pistol Permit, issued on September 10, 2025. He also has a Semi-Automatic Rifle License, which allows for the purchase of semi-automatic rifles.
The order cites both the threats allegedly overheard by students, as well as his active pistol permit, and "recent negative social media attention due to his affiliation and association with the Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) student club at UB."
Police added in the order that Cassidy recently received negative social media attention "surrounding his tabling in support of ICE on campus, gathering a large number of views on TikTok."
"That however, does not distract me from the allegations, which were that he was gonna shoot the school up tomorrow, that he had a foldable AR in this bag with an extended magazine, and he knows how to shoot people so they can't get away," said the judge. "That should have been enough for the investigator to include in his [application for the order]."
John Dudziak, an assistant attorney general under Attorney General Letitia James, who is representing university police in the case, said the AG's office did not take part in creating the order.
"The attorney general's office was not approached by UB police when the temporary terms of the protection order was being put together," Dudziak said. "So, I cannot speak to the contents of, or how or why they put the concerning contents."
Both parties also agreed to pen an order redacting the names of the students who reported the threat from documents. The students could still be required to testify in the future. Dudziak said that the students had been "doxxed" since being named in the documents, meaning that their personal contact details were shared online.
Cassidy's attorney said in court that his client does not know or have a relationship with the students who reported him "and if they were to walk in here today, he would have no clue who they were."
The court will meet again in six months, on May 12, 2025, to decide on if a final order will be issued.
