Threats, rumors and panic continue to flood schools across CSRA

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AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - The flood of school threats – real and rumored – continues across the CSRA, as it has since the Apalachee High School shooting on Sept. 4.

The number of threats, as well as rumors spread among parents on Facebook, has become alarming to officials, nearly hobbling the educational system across Georgia and South Carolina.

Just Wednesday, there were at least four threats in Columbia County.

This is not just happening in Columbia County but across the CSRA.

It’s a serious issue with very serious consequences.

LATEST NEWS:

• The A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School had an incident on Sept. 23 morning that involved a student creating a makeshift gun from craft materials and pointing it at other students on the bus. School officials say the student was dealt with according to the code of student conduct and discipline.
• Over the weekend, a picture of a gun was sent in a group message with several students who attended Belair Middle School. An istrative search was done, and no weapon was found. The student who sent the picture received disciplinary action. The incident was addressed by the Richmond County School System police and student code of conduct.

An expert has some advice for parents:

“Pay close attention, close eye to what their kids are up to because kids are impulsive. They don’t think through the consequences, and a lot of times they do not really mean what they’re saying. They’re just distressed, and they don’t know how to really express it in a healthier way,” said Dale Peeples, associate professor in child and adolescent psychiatry.

Issues like social media, peer pressure, influence and bullying are just a few of the many things kids face.

And now that safety concerns have been on the rise, it’s important for parents to do what they can.

“Having that daily check-in, asking the child about their day, their experiences, getting the highs and lows. So, you know, not just focusing on the negative. So, kids are potentially going to minimize it or downplay it, but you know, again, trying to get that comprehensive picture,” said Peeples.

Lauren Seagraves, a Columbia County parent, says being a parent has never been as stressful as it is now.

“I feel like as a parent, you know, we need to be on top of it,” said Seagraves. “If they hear anything, if the kids need to hear, you know, hear anything, even just maybe gossip, they need to feel comfortable going to a teacher, a counselor, the principal, anybody.”

Seagraves says she just wants the threats and the fear to stop and says that starts with communication.

The spike in threats had Aiken County officials posting a video Wednesday on YouTube warning that these incidents can land young people in jail.

Aiken County Public Schools Superintendent Corey Murphy says that past week, five students from ages 11 to 14 have made threats and are facing potential expulsion and criminal charges.

“These heightened concerns along with the increase in rumors and social media posts about potential school violence, whether hoaxes or not, are threatening the sense of safety and security that’s crucial in our schools,” said Aiken County Superintendent Dr. Corey Murphy.

Charles Barranco, chief of the Aiken Department of Public Safety, said: “We will prosecute those that are involved, and we just ask for your assistance to continue to keep our schools safe.”

Each threat was false and was created to cause fear and chaos, Murphy said.

Sheriff Mike Hunt says there’s no such thing as a hoax: a threat is a threat.

“Be the parent. There’s no such thing as a hoax. A threat is a threat, and all threats will be taken seriously,” said Hunt.

If a parent interferes with an investigation, they will be prosecuted, authorities said.

Officials in both Aiken and Columbia counties urged people – including parents – not to share and repost social media posts about threats.

“Please don’t repost these incidents,” said Charles Barranco, chief of the Aiken Department of Public Safety. “It just continues to go around and around. We feel like we’re chasing our own tail at times. We will prosecute those that are involved.”

The Columbia County School District went so far as to ask parents to “stop the spread of misinformation.”

Gary Owens, chief of police for the Columbia County School District, says to avoid sharing anything related to threats made online because spreading false information about threats only causes panic and leads to more misinformation.

In at least one case, a widely shared post was from last year.

And the frenzy is so high that even a lockdown drill – just a practice – on Wednesday at Tutt Middle School in Richmond County set off a wave of speculation on Facebook, with some claiming they’d seen people running from the school.

Another shared post this week in McDuffie County reached such a level of exaggeration that parents believed up to 20 kids were involved in an incident that actually only involved four.

Last week, sharing of Facebook posts led to a rush of parents picking up their kids at Midland Valley High School, even though there was no danger.

If you do learn of a threat that hasn’t been reported yet, the first thing you should do is alert school officials and local law enforcement. Many school districts have a phone line or website where tips can be posted.

Both the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division have been called in to investigate some of the more serious ones as parents’ and students’ anxiety rises.

SLED said it’s seen 60 more threats targeting schools throughout 23 counties since Sept. 4.

The agency said 21 young people have been charged.

SLED’s behavioral science unit has been requested to assist with six school threat investigations, each in a different county.

“These threats are extremely serious and will be treated as such,” the agency said. “Upon discovery of the threats, law enforcement officials worked diligently to secure schools and find those responsible.”

That work continues.

“School threats are not a joke,” said SLED Chief Mark Keel. “Law enforcement takes every threat seriously, and everyone needs to understand that there are serious consequences.”

What are the latest threats and discipline issues?

On Thursday, Sept. 19:

There was an altercation between two students in a restroom Sept. 19 morning at a Columbia County high school. One of the students involved is being held able according to the code of conduct and the law. A student recorded it on video, and that student will also be held able, s said.

A knife was found at Grovetown Middle School on Sept. 19, parents learned in a letter. The Columbia County School District said there was no direct threat made to the school, students or staff. District police secured the knife, according to the school district. Officials say the student is being held able according to the code of conduct and the law.

On Wednesday, Sept. 18:

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office got a tip of a social media bomb threat targeting T.J. Elder Middle School. An 11-year-old student at the school was arrested and charged with terroristic threats and acts and criminal attempt to disrupt a public school.

Evans High School was hit by a hoax, though no direct threat was been made to the school. Multiple students have been identified and will be facing consequences for their actions, as well as not returning to school, the Columbia County School District said.

Also Wednesday, a Greenbrier High School student was being held able under the law and the student code of conduct after making threatening comments toward the school, according to the district.

At Grovetown Middle School, a student made threatening comments against the school and three other students, parents were told. The student is being held able under the code of conduct and the law.

At Lakeside Middle School, two students are being held able under the law and code of conduct after two separate, unrelated incidents in which the students made comments of a threatening nature in the presence of other students. The district have investigated each report.

And a police presence at Harlem High School prompted a letter to parents. It was because a student left campus. The student was safely returned, and there was no threat to the school, s said.

On Monday, Sept. 16:

Four students were involved in a disciplinary issue at Thomson-McDuffie Middle School, according to school officials. At least one student was facing a tribunal, while the other three were apparently affected. The district declined to name the nature of the disciplinary issue.

At Columbia Middle School, a letter went home to families informing them a knife had been found on campus. The student showed the knife to another student on the bus, and is being held able according to the code of conduct and the law, according to school officials.

In Richmond County, a Barton Chapel Elementary School student brought a makeshift knife to school and showed it to other students. s responded, the student was removed from the class and the knife was confiscated. The incident will be addressed by the Richmond County School System police and student code of conduct.

Two 17-year-old Glenn Hills High School students were arrested Thursday after school officials found both in possession of pocket knives on school property. A knife was found in one student’s backpack after the student was seen stabbing trashcans, according to authorities. The other student was caught with a knife in a general sweep. Both were arrested.

On Sunday in Aiken County a social media post threatened several middle schools. Officials say after investigating, an 11-year-old was charged with multiple counts of student threats and threatening a public official and referred to South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice. The next day, a 12-year-old was accused of modifying Sunday’s threat and recirculating it.

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