A president of a student right-wing organization who was alleged to have made threats to “shoot up the school” will not be allowed to own firearms for six more months as decided in a court hearing Tuesday morning.
Jacob Cassidy, president of UB’s Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) chapter, had at least nine firearms seized by University Police (UPD) under a temporary extreme risk protection order in November after two witnesses alleged Cassidy told a friend that he had a “foldable AR in my bag” and describe plans to “shoot them in the head.”
Cassidy’s extreme risk protection order — that prohibits purchases and possessions of firearms per New York State’s “Red Flag Law” — was first extended by six months during a Nov. 24 hearing, and will be extended again to Nov. 24.
The university told The Spectrum in an emailed statement that Cassidy was not attending classes this semester.
Cassidy, who paced at the courtroom doors prior to the hearing, declined comment to The Spectrum, saying, “Not at this point. Thank you.”
Cassidy was visibly hesitant to agree to UPD’s request to extend the order, to which State Supreme Court Justice Emilio Colaiacovo asked if he was being forced to accept the extension.
Cassidy said he was agreeing to it under his own free will in response.
Unless UPD files another application with new allegations, the order will not be extended past Nov. 24, Colaiacovo said during the hearing.
“If anything, this should be a learning experience for you. A costly one at that. That as you go forward in your education and wherever life takes you, that before uttering things, you’ll remember this,” Colaiacovo told Cassidy. “Is that too much to ask, Mr. Cassidy?”
YAF e-board members did not respond to The Spectrum’s request for comment.
Jack Koscinski, the newly elected president of the undergraduate Student Association that YAF sued in 2024, did not respond to The Spectrum’s request for comment.
The news desk can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com.
