3 students charged for allegedly making threats against Detroit-area high school
(CBS DETROIT) - Three students were charged Wednesday for allegedly making threats against their Oakland County high school, officials said.
Two South Lyon East High School students were charged with false report of threats of terrorism and a third student was charged with intentional threats to commit acts of violence against a school, school employees or students.
The charges stem from separate social media posts made on Sept. 8, according to the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office.
After school on Monday, at around 9:30 p.m., a student sent a teacher a screenshot of a social media post that said, "[G]uys imma shoot up the school tomorrow." That teacher then notified administrators.
While investigating, authorities learned that two similar posts were made "in the same group chat indicating 'I'm going to blow up the school,'" according to the prosecutor's office.
At least 10 students received the messages.
"Parents and kids should feel safe at school," stated Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald. "These threats directly impact students, teachers, and staff, and they also undermine our entire community's confidence in the safety of our schools. It's not a joke, and the charges we issued will ensure that these students face appropriate consequences."
Before charges were issued, the three students were banned from all school facilities in the district while the investigation was underway.
"Having investigated five potential or real threats in five days is completely unacceptable and traumatizing to the community," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. "I want to be very clear, that any threat will be fully investigated, and we will seek to hold the person accountable for their actions. Whether they intended to carry out an act of violence or thought it was a joke, it is a crime and will be treated as such."