Fayette County deputies were present at Starr’s Mill High School Thursday morning following a reported threat of violence found written on a wall, this time in a girls restroom.
That follows a day of disruption at Starr’s Mill Monday following a scribbled threat of gun violence in a boys restroom the preceding Friday.
After the Starr’s Mill principal emailed parents Sunday night about the threat, attendance Monday was significantly affected. No suspects have been arrested in that incident.
The Starr’s Mill incident Thursday involved a threat discovered in a girls restroom, one student reported to The Citizen. A photo above shows deputies in a hallway at the school Thursday.
Here’s the letter emailed Thursday from Principal Allen Leonard:
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October 6 Letter to students and parents
Good afternoon Panthers,
This morning a student reported finding a message written on the 800 hall girls restroom stall door that stated “Shoot the school Oct. 7.” Shortly thereafter, we found another message written on a wall in a boys restroom on the 600 hall that stated “Y’all for real afraid of writing on bathroom wall, I’ll kill all you n—s tomorrow.”
We immediately notified law enforcement, and are working collaboratively to determine the source of the messages.
This type of behavior will not be tolerated. Threats against a school are a felony offense with severe consequences. Students who participate in this type of behavior will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. They will have a criminal record that will follow them the rest of their lives.
I commend our students who have brought us information about these incidents, and ask that they continue to do so. Reporting potentially unsafe or suspicious behavior to the school as quickly as possible is an important part of keeping our students, school, and community safe. We will continue to have an increased law enforcement presence on campus.
These messages have caused major disruptions at our school, and have caused anxiety and discord among students, parents and staff. This conduct is not reflective of the expectations and standards that Fayette County Public Schools and the Starr’s Mill High community have of students.
Please reach out to me if you would like to discuss the incidents. Do not hesitate to call (770-486-xxxx) or email me (leonard.allen@fcboe.org). I will answer your questions to the best of my ability based on the information that I have.
Thank you for your continued support of Starr’s Mill High School.
Sincerely,
Allen Leonard, Principal
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A similar incident occurred Oct. 5 at McIntosh High School in Peachtree City.
In this one, a post of a photo of writing on a wall was circulated on social media. The post referenced “shooting up MHS,” said Peachtree City Police Department spokesman Chris Hyatt.
Hyatt said police were called to the school and, along with staff, searched the walls of the school, but found nothing written on any wall.
Police maintained a presence at the school on Wednesday and Thursday, Hyatt said.
A third incident that led to a law enforcement presence came at Bennett’s Mill Middle School in Fayetteville on Oct. 6.
In this case, a student found a post on Instagram said, “I (redacted) the school tomorrow. Be ready hoes.”
Fayetteville Police Department spokesman Jeff Harris said the student was concerned that the anonymous post might be targeting her school and informed a teacher.
Harris noted that the post did not mention Bennett’s Mill or Fayetteville.
Police nonetheless maintained an enhanced presence at the school.
The activities at the three schools came on the heels of an Oct. 5 threatened shooting at Fayette County High School in Fayetteville.
The threat came to the cell phones of some students by way of an AirDrop message. The school instituted the prearranged security protocol — Code Orange — with police arriving and maintaining a presence.
Harris said the school’s school resource officer was notified by administrators of the message received at approximately 1:50 p.m. about the threatened shooting that was supposed to occur just minutes later at 2 p.m.
Police later in the day charged a 14-year-old Fayette County High School male with making terroristic threats in connection with the shooting threat made earlier Tuesday at high school. [An FCHS student writes about what that school lockdown felt like in this link.]
Fayetteville police later in the afternoon said the juvenile student involved had been Identified and was being questioned by school staff and administrators.
The 14-year-old was subsequently interviewed by police and charged, said department spokesman Jeff Harris.
Harris said the male admitted sending the text, also claiming that he received it from another party and passed it on. — Additional Starr’s Mill reporting by Cal Beverly.
When all of these parents stop thinking our kids are too good for them, they’ll allow metal detectors to be installed at every school, at every entrance and exit. They work. They save lives, our children’s lives. Quit thinking we’re above all of that. It’s here and it’s not going anywhere, so every thing possible to keep these kids safe, along with the teachers, principals, counselors, and the rest of the school staff!
Allen…Have someone supervise your bathrooms. Jeez… back in the 70’s and 80’s we also had hall monitors. With what we pay in school taxes, we might expect some level of video surveillance and professional observation. Multiple threats of violence and authorities sit around in their office deciding when and how to distribute a notification to parents? Kid’s outsmarting the adults is a sad commentary.