Jennifer Moonsong
WCLU News Director
This week the prevalence of school threats in the Bluegrass State have been concentrated, and it prmompted the Kentucky State Police to release a statement regarding the manner in which it handled such threats.
Kentucky State Police Commissioner, Phillip Burnett, Jr. said that as a trooper and a father, the Kentucky State Police would continue to work with school resource officers, local, law-enforcement and school personnel to ensure safety for students.
In the south central Kentucky region, Barren County, Glasgow, Hart County and Allen County school districts have all dealt with threats, substantiated, and unsubstantiated this week.
“For the last couple of days, the Barren County Sheriff’s Office has been investigating several social media post concerning safety concerns at our schools. While collaborating with Barren County Schools, the Kentucky State Police, and the Glasgow Police Department, we have been able to identify the sources of these social media post. We are currently working on criminal charges on these individuals. All offenders have been identified as juveniles so no further information will be released,” said Mike Houchens, Chief Deputy of the BCSO, in a Thursday evening press release.
In addition, several local schools and legal entities created a joint statement addressing parental concerns, and advising parents to be aware of their children’s social media activity. Furthermore, it reminded parents and students alike that making threats breaks the law.
Investigations into threats in Hart County, and Allen County have also taken place this week.
The Hart County district says the Hart County Sheriff’s Office and the Kentucky State Police are investigating a Snapchat post that has been shared that makes a “non-specific threat”, while a threat of violence on Friday 13 in under investigation in Allen County. In Lebanon, Kentucky a 14 year old juvenile was charged with Terroristic Threatening, as were other juveniles across the state for similar incident.
Numerous incidents are still under investigation, while some charges are still forthcoming.
In response, school systems across the region and state are adding officers to campuses. Each and every school system has specific protocol in place for threats and incidents of school violence.