An arrest was made at Lake Orion High School after a student posted an online threat of violence against the school. The 16-year-old sophomore allegedly shared a message on social media stating that many would die in a planned school shooting for yesterday. The post was noticed by an individual who then alerted authorities.
Diligence on the part of local law enforcement led to the identification and arrest of the Lake Orion High student, according to a press release by Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard. "Let me reiterate, if you make a threat, you will be tracked down and held to account," Bouchard stated, as CBS News Detroit reported. Despite the discovery of the threat being bogus, with deputies determining the student had no access to any firearms, the fear it induced within the school community was evident in absentee rates, with hundreds of students missing class on the days following the threat.
The consequences of the false threat had significant repercussions at Lake Orion High as attendance saw notable reductions: 490 students were absent on Monday, 255 missed Tuesday, and 356 were not in school yesterday. This information comes from Sheriff Bouchard, who underlined the gravity of such threats and their impact on normal school operations. In a bid to identify the one behind the disturbing message, the Sheriff's Office Computer Crimes Unit successfully secured search warrants, as WLNS notes.
Holding the student at Oakland County Children's Village, authorities scheduled a hearing to determine subsequent actions in the case yesterday. The young male faces a charge for making a violent threat against a school. The district's readiness for such emergencies was evidenced in a recent safety and security drill, conducted on February 4, information retrieved from the district's website as referenced by ClickOnDetroit. Additionally, the State of Michigan's OK2SAY Student Safety Program remains a key resource for students and parents to share tips regarding behaviors that pose threats to the school's learning environment.
