David Young (bomber)

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David Young was a former police officer who took over the Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyoming in 1986. The incident was recorded in When Angels Intervene to Save the Children and later dramatized in the NBC movie To Save the Children.

Cokeville Elementary School was the target of a May 16, 1986 domestic terrorist attack bringing it to the attention of the world when it was taken hostage. David Young, a deranged former policeman and his wife, Doris, took over the school with a cache of weapons and a large bomb transported on a cart. Many people thought they could shoot him, but learned he was tied to the bomb. Should he go down, and the key pulls out, the bomb would detonate. The incident inspired the book When Angels Intervene to Save the Children on which the NBC movie To Save the Children was later based.

The full story is that David Young claimed the schools filled their minds with lies. Yet, it was familiar to many people today: dozens of lives hanging by a thread. What they needed was a modern-day miracle. The windows and doors were opened to let some air into the room, which probably weakened the bomb. After that, several teachers and students started praying. It seemed that someone had heard it; first, David became agitated and seemingly lost confidence. He left the controls of the bomb to his wife and left the room. At this point, the children became restless, and Doris Young suggested they move some of the kids around. But in the process, eyewitnesses remember Doris making careless motions with her hands. And when she pulled it to far to the right, the bomb detonated.

Later as the police investigated the classroom to check for any dead bodies, they came to a shocking and relieving conclusion: Not a single child had perished. It was because of the windows that were open and the blast powder being soaked into a useless paste, that the bomb didn't completely detonate. Many people in Cokeville, Wyoming believe they were blessed with a modern-day miracle.

How did this miracle of survival happen? Many of the children described seeing people of light who directed them to safety before the explosion occurred. Others talked about hearing the voice from an adult who told them where to go to avoid the bomb's blast.

One girl described her experience in detail: "They [the people of light] were standing there above us. There was a mother and father and a lady holding a tiny baby and a little girl with long hair. There was a family of people. The woman told us that a bomb was going off soon and to listen to our brother. She said to be sure we did what he told us. They were dressed in white, bright like light bulbs, but brighter around the face. The woman made me feel good. I knew she loved me."

The girls brother stated: "I didn't see anything. I just heard a voice tell me to find my little sisters and take them over by the window, and keep them there. They were playing with their friends, and they did not want to move. I took them to the window and helped them through."

Another six-year-old child also testified that "a lady told me that a bomb was going to go off soon. She said to go over by the window and hurry out."

In 1990, Cokeville High School made The USA Today being dubbed "Title Town" for the amazing amount of honors bestowed upon its athletic programs.

Retelling The entire story of the Lucky School can be viewed on the Unsolved Mysteries "Miracles" and "The Best of Unsolved Mysteries" collections, both on the first disc.