By Mina Buford and Melanie Schnell
Several faculty members helped to identify and discipline the author of a threatening statement written on a bathroom wall in NNHS on Friday, September 14, according to Principal Kevin Pobst.
By the end of the day, Resource Officer Russ Davis said faculty had reviewed security tapes, conducted interviews, and determined that the threat was invalid.
“In this case we had a threat that actually had a date. Fortunately, it was a Sunday,” said Pobst. “Either the person who wrote the threat was particularly sensitive, or misinformed or just sloppy. In any case, we took it very seriously.”
In general, if a threat includes specific dates or names, it requires immediate attention from the school administration and resource officer. The offender did not include any names. However, a date was clearly defined.
A staff member who prefers to remain anonymous reported the threatening message. NNHS administrators Pobst, Davis, Assistant Principal Ronald Helms, Dean Steve Madden, Dean Suzanne Cooke, and Facilities Manager Lisa Corrigan met immediately to develop a plan of action.
“There were two staff members who were critical in this matter,” said Davis. “Without their help, it may not have been resolved as quickly.”
In the meeting, the staff determined the probable time frame in which the incident occurred. From there, Davis and Pobst said it was not difficult to review tapes from school cameras and monitor the activity around the vandalized bathroom during the predicted time period.
“By [investigating using security cameras] we were able to identify someone who was likely to have done that,” said Pobst. “The person admitted that they had done that. The next step is to investigate if they have the means to carry it out,”
According to Davis, the offender was not considered a threat, nor did the offender have the means to carry one out.
“The things that get you expelled from school are dealing drugs, bringing weapons, and attacking a staff member,” said Pobst. “A threat to do harm to other people starts approximating a weapon.”
Neither Pobst nor Davis commented on the specific disciplinary actions the offender received. However, they did offer that the offender will return to NNHS, but is currently still serving his/her punishment.
“In this case it was a school matter and a police matter,” said Davis. “In general, school consequences could become part of the [offender’s] school record, and the police side of things could result in a criminal record.”
According to Davis, an offense becomes a police concern when there is violation of the law. He declined to comment on the specific law violated.
The staff wishes for the offender to remain anonymous. According to Pobst, this type of behavior was uncharacteristic of the offender.
“Once we’ve determined that there isn’t a threat, we have taken care of our obligation to keep you safe. Now our interest is in the best interest of that [person],” said Pobst. “Now we have to make sure that the [person] has the best chance to live a good rest of his/her life.”
