Local law enforcement official warn of seriousness of making such threats
While the community still reels from the shock of Wednesdays school shooting at Apalachee High School that resulted in four deaths and nine injuries, law enforcement has had to respond to a slew of threats against schools that followed in its wake.
According to reports, by Saturday, 19 arrests had been made in the Atlanta area – some of them have come from Walton County’s surrounding counties of Morgan, Newton and Gwinnett. Investigations still continue in these as well as in Walton County as threats have been made relating to almost all local schools, the most recent one to Social Circle City Schools.
Social Circle Police Chief Jason Guest reported that one arrest has already been made in that instance and says the investigation is ongoing.
“Following a thorough investigation, the Social Circle Police Department identified the individual responsible for making threats against Social Circle High School through a Snapchat post,” Guest said. “With the help of the Madison Police Department, the 17-year-old suspect was taken into custody Friday evening and is currently being held in the Morgan County Jail. That suspect faces charges of Terroristic Threats and Disturbing a Public School.”
Guest said that although there have been several threats, and arrests made, at this time none have actually turned out to be credible. He said the images of a high-powered rifle used in the threat on Snapchat against Social Circle High School turned out to be sourced from the internet and the individual arrested did not actually possess any weapons.
While officials report that many “rumors” of threats have been circulated, they acknowledge that although none of these have been found to be credible at this point, threats have actually been made. However, they report that any threat at all will be investigated and the perpetrator or perpetrators arrested and charged to the fullest extent that the law allows. Parents are urged to warn their children of the seriousness of this behavior.
“We have all, every agency around, has made a concerted effort to stamp this out and we have investigated every last one as soon as it has been posted. These threats are an effort to continue to terrorize the community. I cannot tell you how many parents have called or stopped by to tell us how terrified they are. This is very real. We see literally 1000s of these and it is not just a Snapchat and it is not funny – these are terroristic threats and anyone who does this will be charged with making terroristic threats and anything else we can charge them for. We are looking at charging for disrupting a public school and we are consulting with district attorneys to see if there is more we can charge,” Guest said.
The threats against schools began to come in soon after details of Wednesdays shooting was made public, and arrests quickly followed. Just one day after the shooting at Apalachee High School, Newton County deputies arrested a 13-year-old male student from the Newton County School System for threatening students and staff at Eastside High School. He too has been charged with terroristic threats and acts. Newton County officials report he is currently being held by the Juvenile Court System.
“Sheriff Ezell Brown urges all students and their parents to understand that any threats or acts of violence will not be tolerated, and those responsible will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. All threats made towards NCSS students, staff, or anyone will be taken seriously. Ensuring the safety and security of our schools and community remains a top priority,” Newton County Sheriff’s Office said in the press release announcing the arrest. They went on to urge everyone who “sees something to say something.”
Walton County officials have urged the communities not to help the spread what may be a rumor, many of which tend to following a tragic event such as the Sept. 4 school shooting, but to indeed say something if they see anything at all that needs to be brought to the attention of officials.
“Please be assured that if there is any possibility of a problem in one of our schools, we will be on top of it immediately,” Walton County Sheriff Joe Chapman said. “Also, please know that we will have extra deputies in our schools for the foreseeable future. Your safety and that of your children is and always will be our top priority.”
The assurances, however, did not prevent many parents from keeping students out of schools last week as threats and rumors continued to spread the terror. Apalachee High School has been a crime scene for most of last week but their students are expected to return to school Tuesday. In Walton County, some schools had a lighter curriculum to accommodate students who were not in school, but school officials have advised parents that a stepped up law enforcement presence will be on hand to assure the safety of students.
“Currently, there are no credible threats to Walton County Schools. With direct assistance from the FBI, GBI and Georgia DHS, we are continuing to evaluate each and every social media post concerning school violence,” WCSO shared in a social media post. “In some cases arrests of persons originating these post have been made. We are aware of the continuing post made to incite fear in all of us. We will continue to work until every single one is evaluated and make an arrest in every case possible. We are continuing to provide extra security at each of our schools. Be aware that we operate marked and UNMARKED VEHICLES. Many of our Deputies have children in these very schools. We continue to take this situation very seriously.”
“We thank the City of Loganville Police Department, the City of Monroe Police Department, and the Walton County Sheriff’s Office staff for their continued commitment to keeping our students safe. Following the recent tragedy at Apalachee High School, our law enforcement agencies will increase their presence at our schools in the coming days out of an abundance of caution,” Walton County School District announced.
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