A Boy and His Lawyer

Mitchell Johnson, 13, was "shocked" at what the press wrote about him, so he wanted to explain publicly why he and Andrew Golden, 11, shot up their Arkansas school, killing four classmates and a teacher. So says Tom Furth, the Ohio lawyer hired by the boy's father. Last Friday, ABC's Barbara Walters was prepared to air Mitch Johnson's version of the day of the shooting, as related by Furth, on "20/20." But that afternoon the piece was abruptly dropped.

Details of the interview, including a "hit list" and Mitch's description of the attack, have since seeped into the tabloids. Earlier Furth had told TIME, "There are people that knew [the shooting] was going to happen and others who should have known." A source has also told TIME that after the shooting, the two boys had planned to drive three or four hours to a cabin in the woods owned by the Goldens. For that they needed gas, but the three stations the duo stopped at as they drove to school refused them service because of their age.

But why did ABC cancel the piece? (continued)