An 18-year-old special education student at Avon High School is facing charges after a school resource officer found a 10-inch knife and a notebook containing a hand-drawn classroom map inside a secured program unit on the campus. Police say Success Williams had kept the knife with him since school started on July 31, and that he intended to use it against a teacher's aide.
According to court documents reported by FOX59, the case unfolded on Monday inside OASIS, a self-contained special education program housed in a secured unit at Avon High School. A staff member became alarmed by Williams' demeanor and the way he was holding his notebook, and grew more concerned when he approached and asked to take a break in the seclusion room. That staffer looked through the notebook, found a knife inside, and alerted another staff member, who ordered the classroom cleared and notified a colleague. The program director then showed a school resource officer the notebook and the knife.
Williams was placed in a padded seclusion room following the discovery, and Avon High School families and staff were notified the same day, while OASIS families were notified immediately, per the report. The probable cause affidavit identifies the knife and notebook as reportedly belonging to Williams, who told investigators he had taken the knife from his mother's kitchen.
A Motive Rooted in Anger Over a Diagnosis
During police questioning, Williams said he brought the knife to school because he was angry about being diagnosed with autism, according to charging documents. Investigators say he was also upset about his individualized education plan, and that he planned to attack a teacher's aide because she had touched his desk, according to investigators cited in the report.
Police statements relayed by FOX59 also indicate that Williams had previously physically attacked a school staff member before this incident. According to the affidavit, Williams asked investigators whether he would be charged with a felony or a misdemeanor once the knife was discovered.
A Premeditated Timeline Tied to a Symbolic Date
Court records show Williams had originally planned to carry out the attack on August 11, but rescheduled it for August 20 because he wanted the date to be remembered similarly to 9/11, according to court documents. That shift in timing, laid out in the same court filings, points to a degree of planning behind the alleged threat that investigators have detailed in the case against him.
Williams is being charged as an adult and faces a charge of attempted battery, classified as a Level 5 felony, along with a charge of possession of a knife on school property, which is classified as a misdemeanor. Under Indiana Code § 35-50-2-6, a Level 5 felony conviction carries a state prison sentence ranging from one to six years, with an advisory sentence of three years, and fines of up to $10,000, according to FindLaw.
Separately, Indiana Code § 35-47-5-2.5 classifies carrying a knife intended for use as a weapon on school grounds or a school bus as a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail, though the charge elevates to a Level 6 felony if bodily injury results, according to Justia Law. The same statute allows a narrow exception permitting knives on school property only if they remain fully secured and locked inside a motor vehicle, as noted by Urban EDC.
School District Response and Custody Status
The Hendricks County Prosecutor's Office opened the case as a new filing during the week of August 17, and the Avon Schools Police Department is handling the situation. Williams was remanded to the Hendricks County Jail, where he is being held without bond, and the school district removed him from the Avon campus after the knife was discovered.
The Avon Community School Corporation established its own dedicated district police department in July 2020, replacing a rotating officer system with full-time school resource officers assigned across its campuses, according to WTHR. Avon High School served 3,523 students across grades 9 through 12 during the 2024-2025 academic year, per the National Center for Education Statistics, and the broader Avon Community School Corporation oversees 12 public schools serving more than 10,700 students across Hendricks County, according to Ballotpedia.
The allegations against Williams remain unproven claims contained in charging documents and a probable cause affidavit, and have not been tested in court. No additional details about a trial date or plea have been reported.
