* Girls, 15 and 16, in jail after threatening school killings

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News | Peachtree City

Girls, 15 and 16, in jail after threatening school killings

Tue, 10/30/2007 - 4:17pm

By: John Munford

Friend’s tip about MySpace posting leads to bust of plans to shoot up McIntosh High

Two girls, ages 15 and 16, who are accused of chatting on a MySpace site about shooting people at McIntosh High School will remain in a youth detention facility pending the next juvenile court hearing in the case, The Citizen learned Tuesday afternoon.

No shooting occurred and no one was hurt. Because the girls are both juveniles, their names are being withheld by authorities.

According to Police Chief James Murray, the girls allegedly planned to get their friends out of the school in Peachtree City, commit the shootings, take drugs and then kill themselves. They were even talking about a potential date to carry out the threat, police said.

The girls were arrested Monday and charged with one felony count each of making a terroristic threat, police said.

One of the arrested girls was a student at McIntosh and the other was a former student at McIntosh who later attended the alternative school and is now being home-schooled, police said.

Police were contacted about the threats after one of the girls’ friends told her grandmother, who then made an anonymous call to police, Murray said.

“You just never know,” Murray said. “You have to border on being safe. ... You never know what’s going on in people’s minds when they discuss things like this. You can’t take anything for granted.”

So far no weapons have been found that could be linked to either of the girls, but all such threats should be taken seriously, said Murray, who lauded the initial girl who reported the threats to her grandmother.

Police are hoping that others who have knowledge about this alleged plot will come forward and share what they know, Murray said.

The initial online conversation about the threat took place several weeks ago but was updated recently online, Murray said.

The investigation is ongoing and police seized the computers of both girls to analyze them for further evidence, Murray said. He declined to say whether any other arrests or charges are expected in connection with the case.

Fayette County school officials were quick to respond to the threat, and warn that all incidents of this type will be taken seriously.

“We don’t know if this was just banter, but we will respond to these threats,” said school spokesperson Melinda Berry-Dreisbach.

She added the students may have thought that they were “invisible” with chat on the Internet, but the school system takes all threats seriously.

“Students are also supposed to conduct themselves appropriately off-campus. Kids need to realize that they can ruin their lives,” she added.

This is a waste of time from

Submitted by andreea360 on Fri, 04/18/2008 - 3:05am.

This is a waste of time from the police. I think that they are full of donuts and got bored and said to arrest some children and make some fun out of it. How could two girls that age make a shooting? Maybe the police man should take them to a drug rehab facility because them girls are addicts,right? I think that you all know that this is a wasted of time and the police are trying to be serious, but it`s just child play.

Did I miss something?

Submitted by TonyF on Fri, 04/18/2008 - 6:11am.

Why this reply, and why now? Are you one of those girls?

O wad some Power the giftie gie us,To see oursels as ithers see us!
(R. Burns)
If we could see ourselves as others see us, we would vanish on the spot.
(E. M. Cioran)

I AM ONE OF THE GIRLS.

Submitted by mkneely on Sun, 08/30/2009 - 12:04am.

Um, i AM one of the girls who got arrested for this. im the 15 year old. Now i am seventeen years old and i really dont enjoy reading all of the *** AND lies im reading. you people disgust me. me and my friend WERE NOT going to shoot up ANYTHING. it was on myspace, get a life. and it wasnt like the press had made it become. it was nothing like this, you ignorant folks are SLANDERING teenagers names, how trashy are you ?!

Opinion from actual students

Submitted by shakenbake on Thu, 11/01/2007 - 4:42pm.

As a current McIntosh High School student, I can honestly say that the blame shouldn't be placed on the school/city/community for any of the decisions any of our peers choose. Every city has its drugs and every school has its parties. Although it's uncommon for high schools to recieve threats as severe as these that we have encountered I can only say that I am impressed at the way our administrators have handled this situation. Many parents can say how much differently it should have been handled, but how many of you really have had to deal with this ever? I doubt any... if you don't feel that your children are safe, then take them elsewhere, but as a senior this year never once have I felt that my personal safety was severely endangered.
Wait until your children leave Peacthree City and hit the real world where serious things happen more regularly...

Good luck parents.

Hey shakenbake,

Submitted by Cyclist on Thu, 11/01/2007 - 4:51pm.

Nice post!!!!
-------------------------------------------
Caution - The Surgeon General has determined that constant blogging is an addiction that can cause a sedentary life style.

Opinion from actual students

Submitted by shakenbake on Thu, 11/01/2007 - 4:42pm.

Good luck parents.

Not the answer . . .

Submitted by cruiserman on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 1:13pm.

but just a thought regarding parenting and reaping what you sow.

Someone much smarter than me once talked about violence being the final frontier for adolescents. The monologue started off about in the xth century, how shocking Opera Music was to the establishment. It was about perspective and relativity. That there is a coming of age for each generation and a passage where they feel compelled make their own mark. Think about it: the Charleston, Jazz, Elvis . . . Unfortunately, after the 60, 70 and 80s, the only thing left to shock us (the parent) is violence.

The point being, it may make you a square in your child/teen’s eye to behave shocked and not so worldly about their lives. I know many people who want to be cool with their kids and sit down and tell them every glowing detail about their pasts and misspent youth.

I think this may be a mistake, being quite so open, as it is human in adolescence to try to push the envelope.

Do you follow?

Fault....again

Submitted by sam0917 on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 8:07am.

Let's think about this for a minute. Yes, these girls are juveniles but they are 15 & 16 years old. Old enough to know right from wrong, good choices from bad choices, felonies from misdemeanors!!! They're old enough to know which road to take and also to know where that road will take them. Maybe their parents did do everything right. We as parents can only do so much in our power to ensure our kids know what the right and wrong things are and hope and pray they'll be strong in their values that have been set into place. I know from my twelve years of experience (so far) with my own ADHD child that my husband and I can try our hardest, do everything we know we should do to guide him and show him the right ways, and still he comes home with choices that he's decided to make because he says, "it's easier to lie sometimes, or it's easier to do what everyone else does or it was fun at the time." And we do everything as parents, he has rules, structure, chores, discipline (sometimes it seems like everyday), we know the kids he's around and their families. But, he still CHOOSES to do the things he does.

My point is the "village theory" really doesn't come into play here. These girls could've had the parents that did everything that "should have" been done and maybe the "village" stepped in everytime it "should have" but they still thought this out, talked about it, planned when, where, who and with what and then planned what they'd do to themselves.

I don't think anything should be easy on them from here on out. They lost that option with their CHOICE!! If we make it easy then we'll be just like the parents, village and system you're talking about that coddles to these kids and doesn't teach them rules, discipline and right and wrong. We'll be fixing it for them and then they'll gloat, just like my twelve year old does when he's thinking he's gotten away with something until he realizes we know and he's busted and we're not going to be easy on him in hopes that one day it will snap for him into the "right choices" section of his brain. But, we can only do all we can do as parents to keep these things from happening. My husband and I know we're doing what's right for our kids and we're trying to teach them the right way but that doesn't mean they won't be in these same kind of headlines as well.

I obivously hope that won't be the case but I also won't be begging for the law to be easy on them either. I do believe these girls need some help along the way and I'm not sure what that should consist of but I know that "treading lightly" will not help them in the long run if they've already come this far in their choices. Now, please feel free to blast away at me for my opinion but remember it is just that, my opinion. God bless our kids.

fault again

Submitted by shadowalker on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 12:10pm.

I too do not feel that it could have been said anybetter,
i also can not see parrents doing all the right things and a teen
acting this way, close personal contact with your child would not allow this to happen. im sorry i just do not see this if you are involved with your child, also if this was an adult 2 plus years in jail they are as you say old enought and should be punished as adult
if you are talking about taking someones life you have gone to far at any age lock them up and take away there space

shadowalker

Juvenile Justice in Fayette County

Submitted by All Smiles on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 10:14am.

I could not have said it better Charity! One of my children got in trouble with the law about a year ago and I was devastated!! Some people talked about "the child’s parents" on this very site. I have always been very involved with my child’s friends, their parents, and teachers, volunteered at the school and my child was also very involved in sports, both school sports and travel sports. We as parents guide them, correct them and instill a good set of values in them as still; some kids make bad choices, for whatever reason. Many times, the child doesn’t even know why they made such a poor choice. This is the teenage brain.
When we went to court, I felt the Juvenile Judge was overly harsh on my child. I have heard of other kids who were handed much lighter sentences. I feel very differently now! I thank God the Juvenile Judge in Fayette County was so hard on my child the first time. It really made a difference with my child and my child has matured ten fold more since accurance. I now feel sorry for the kids who get off lightly. I wonder, will they learn from light punishment?
As these girls are juveniles, I hope they will remain as juveniles as I know Judge Tarey Schell will “lower the boom” on them as he puts it.

Fault?

Submitted by JoAnn on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 6:02pm.

Whose fault? It could be the Parents, It could be the school, It could be the community. Either way, these girls need the crap beat out of them. Let it be my daughter, she knows - it is gonna be a whipping party. She knows the difference between RIGHT and WRONG. Dang it - when in doubt - give them the FEAR of GOD. I promise it will work.

I AM ONE OF THE GIRLS.

Submitted by mkneely on Sun, 08/30/2009 - 12:06am.

come beat me.

fault

Submitted by shadowalker on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 12:16pm.

Sorry to say joann at this point a butt wooping is too late
at this point they have threaten to take another human life
that to me is an adult action (but more and more becoming teens)
i for one think they need adult punishment
they will get there butts beat in prison.
we have such a large diverse population now we can not play with
this anymore, just like death row they have minium 6 months and put there lights out we can not keep holding on to playing with people and kids. this was a very bad action by these girls. very bad
i would be more than upset if my child went to that school or were friends with these girls
shadowalker

McIntosh High

Submitted by PTC_New_Native on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 2:23pm.

I have a child in McIntosh. While I am greatly concerned with the recent events, I remember drawing soldiers and guns while in school. In the model club, I built battleships and one very intricate model of a Colt 45. We are in different times. We don’t have the luxury of being complacent. We need to address it properly. As to the DA letting them off lightly, LETS BE SERIOUS. This person has psychological issues; would you like to compound them by putting them in jail so they learn to be better criminals?

I believe the parents and child need help. I see this as more of a cry (and thank god they didn't go through with it) that an itinerary. How many times in school (before Columbine) did you say "I am going to kill you"?

We live now in a knee-jerk litigious environment that seems hell-bent on blaming vs. looking at how they could have prevented issues. GET OFF YOUR SOAP BOXES. This is not just the Childs fault, not just the parents fault, but as one reader posted. THIS IS PTC's FAULT.

Get involved with your community, your children’s friends, your neighbors’ children (WITHIN REASON). I feel sorry for the child and parents, but I hope they get the education they need and not from our criminal justice system.

The internet has allowed children to publish their diaries. The internet has changed everything as it relates to making ones feelings known. We have the tools to address it. Let’s ensure that this is the only incident in her life by educating her on proper social behavior, teaching her parents on recognizing signs in their children. But most of all, reviewing your children’s internet sites. Use software, ask a friend, talk to your children’s friends. In other words "Get Involved".

This is just my oppinion and I could be wrong.

The More I learn, the Less I know

McIntosh Arrest

Submitted by JustSayNo on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 10:32am.

I agree with much of what soontobegone has to say. It really does take a village to raise a child and that is sadly missing from PTC. It's really hard for those of us who want to parent well when there are so many parents in PTC who allow and host parties with illegal drug and alcohol use. Let's start turning these people into the police. What about getting on the phone to another parent when you've heard about their child hanging with the wrong child or seen them smoking outside the movies or know of drug/alcohol use, sneaking out, etc? Do you make that call? Wouldn't you want someone to call you if they knew your child was doing these things? Maybe then you could do something about it. Are you a bad parent, as redneckbabe implies, if your child does something wrong? None of us have perfect children and these girls have made a huge mistake but you can't automatically assume they have bad parents. I know for a fact that any kid would be blessed to have parents like the ones of the girl from McIntosh. Stop judging, start sticking together as a community and as parents, and please pray for these families. Believe me, it could have just as easily been you or me.

Student Code of Conduct

Submitted by soontobegone on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 7:59am.

Well at least she applies the student code of conduct to "some" of the students at McIntosh! I guess not all students are looked at equally. This in my opinion is just the tip of the iceburg at McIntosh. The school has some MAJOR problems, adminstrative, staff and how they handle the kids, whether good or bad seeds. Not to mention the huge amount of drug/drinking using students at this school.

McIntosh

Submitted by skyspy on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 8:37am.

The school isn't the problem.

Parents and their out of control kids are the problem. When did it become fashionable to completely abdicate your authority as parents???

Contrary to the current psycho babble, disciplining your kids and settig boundaries for them will actually help them.

You are blaming the wrong people

Submitted by redneckbabe on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 8:27am.

You are clearly blaming the wrong people here. Where are these girls' parents?The school doesn't control kids outside of the school compound. As far as drinking and drugs, How is this the staff at Mcintosh's fault? Again where are the parents of these children? You parents have to start taking responsibilty for your children and their actions, quite blaming everyone else for your lack of parenting skills! In case you didn't read it... McIntosh received the Platinum award. The staff and teachers are doing there jobs. What about you?There are girls at McIntosh who are pregnant right now, Is this the school's fault,too?

wrong blame

Submitted by shadowalker on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 12:25pm.

thank you
i went to fay co. high in the late 70s we were paddled and singled out for wrong doing, now its oh no you cant touch my baby.. thats not right to punish them with pain, GUESS WHAT stupid people
it works and has worked for 1000s of years get a grip

capital punishment in all forms of the socity deters all types of crime at all age levels.

Good God even the bible says this. you as "modern" parents are the most stupid group of people i have seen and im not that old

i did not do things wrong because i new that punishment would be brought on me if i did

you folks are hell bent on setting the world loose on itself with these furture my space monsters

shadowalker

I'm blaming the entire community....

Submitted by soontobegone on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 9:07am.

As well as the parents. Whether you like it or not raising a child is done by the "village" because their peers influence (for good and bad) the attitudes actions etc etc etc of your child. For this area to be so republican the moral values here are terrible. The admin. and staff at the school do as little as they can to not draw attention to the other problems of this "Platinum school". As for my job... it is to raise my child as best as I can with the influences around here. That is why we are moving, solely to get away from these influences. Granted they are bad influences everywhere you go, just not as prevalent as here. At least my child as a teen still feels she can talk to me, or how else would I know about all the drugs/drinking etc at the school. I must be doing something right......
Keep your head buried in the sand like most of the parents around here and in a few yrs you will be living in Riverdale south

village idot

Submitted by shadowalker on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 12:32pm.

You are the village idot, when my daughter was being influanced by the wrong friend we brought that friendship to a major hault, i did not sit and watch tv i took my child and did things with her and kept the friend away (by the way my married daughter thanks us for this now) none of my 6 children were raised by your stupid village concept
they were raised and taught by there parents.

you need to get a grip on your ideas
Your comment is really not even worth answering
you just got the village mad
there is no village the parent is the king and queen of that house hold castle and by god we ruled the castle and our kids thank us for the forward thought we put in who WE thats right WE as there god given guardian allowed them to hang with. and in more than one case i told the kid and the kids parent that our kid could not hang with them any more and why and in some cases that parent straighten them out they did not know

wake up

shadowalker

Submitted by hutch866 on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 1:33pm.

I agree with some of what you say, but I think if you're going to call someone an idiot{note the second i} you should be able to spell it right.

I yam what I yam...Popeye

Shadowalker

Submitted by blazing2006 on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 12:42pm.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAmen!

Wow....

Submitted by proudliberal on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 11:27am.

I can't imagine someone could claim to raise their child to the best of their ability and then also say we'll soon be living in Riverdale South. Do you pass this racism off to your children as part of their upbringing? How sad and tragic.

And I don't know how anyone in this current political environment can actually use Republican and MORAL in the same sentence.

If you aren't outraged, you aren't paying attention!!

proudliberal

Submitted by soontobegone on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 12:54pm.

How is this racism? I was speaking about shootings crime drugs etc that go on in Riverdale, check crime stats. I spoke nothing of color, creed, race, or anything else that could be racist.
You are somewhat right about republicans and morals but I was mostly referring to how they see themselves more so than actual facts. As for me , I am independent and plan to stay that way because there is no such thing as a conservative dem. anymore.
But as your post shows the world... (or at least our little piece of it) republicans aren't the only narrow minded indiviuals in the world.

My apologies

Submitted by proudliberal on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 2:02pm.

You're right, soontobegone---you didn't specifically state race and I apologize for my assumptions. I'm just tired of many people blaming race for issues like this---and for our city so called "going down the tubes"....and you and I both know it's happening around us. I read it in the paper week after week ---and I, personally, find that so disheartening.

However, assuming your comments were racist was in no way narrow minded. I abhor racism, yes, that's true....but that does not make me narrow minded.

Proudliberal

Submitted by blazing2006 on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 11:39am.

How do you define proud and liberal? Be specific and detailed please.

Okay....

Submitted by proudliberal on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 11:48am.

proud /praʊd/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[proud] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation adjective, -er, -est, adverb
–adjective 1. feeling pleasure or satisfaction over something regarded as highly honorable or creditable to oneself (often fol. by of, an infinitive, or a clause).
2. having, proceeding from, or showing a high opinion of one's own dignity, importance, or superiority.
3. having or showing self-respect or self-esteem.
4. highly gratifying to the feelings or self-esteem: It was a proud day for him when his son entered college.
5. highly honorable or creditable: a proud achievement.
6. stately, majestic, or magnificent: proud cities.
7. of lofty dignity or distinction: a proud name; proud nobles.
8. Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. pleased; happy: I'm proud to meet you.
9. full of vigor and spirit: a proud young stallion.
10. Obsolete. brave.

lib·er·al /ˈlɪbərəl, ˈlɪbrəl/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[lib-er-uhl, lib-ruhl] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective 1. favorable to progress or reform, as in political or religious affairs.
2. (often initial capital letter) noting or pertaining to a political party advocating measures of progressive political reform.
3. of, pertaining to, based on, or advocating liberalism.
4. favorable to or in accord with concepts of maximum individual freedom possible, esp. as guaranteed by law and secured by governmental protection of civil liberties.
5. favoring or permitting freedom of action, esp. with respect to matters of personal belief or expression: a liberal policy toward dissident artists and writers.
6. of or pertaining to representational forms of government rather than aristocracies and monarchies.
7. free from prejudice or bigotry; tolerant: a liberal attitude toward foreigners.
8. open-minded or tolerant, esp. free of or not bound by traditional or conventional ideas, values, etc.
9. characterized by generosity and willingness to give in large amounts: a liberal donor.
10. given freely or abundantly; generous: a liberal donation.
11. not strict or rigorous; free; not literal: a liberal interpretation of a rule.
12. of, pertaining to, or based on the liberal arts.
13. of, pertaining to, or befitting a freeman.
–noun 14. a person of liberal principles or views, esp. in politics or religion.
15. (often initial capital letter) a member of a liberal party in politics, esp. of the Liberal party in Great Britain.

Proudliberal

Submitted by blazing2006 on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 11:57am.

Well, now we all know you can copy from a textbook. I guess we know how you did in school. Thanks for the respone you answered my question.

Come on blazing2006

Submitted by proudliberal on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 12:02pm.

Quick to insult? Geesh....

Are you really SINCERELY interested in the ways in which I feel proud and the reason I am liberal? Honestly?

And I didn't copy from a textbook--I copied from websters.com, just fyi.

I didn't see the validity of your question so didn't want to put much effort forth in answering. Now if you can explain to me why you are sincerely concerned about my username, I'll see what I can do....

Agree

Submitted by blazing2006 on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 8:32am.

Parents need to be taking more responsibility. This is most definately not the schools fault.

McIntosh Trail

Submitted by dajumbles on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 8:24am.

I am on the McIntosh Trail newspaper, we would like to know more about your opinion of McIntosh High School so we could possibly do an article on it, is there some way we could get into contact with you so we can set up some sort of interview?

I AM ONE OF THE GIRLS.

Submitted by mkneely on Sun, 08/30/2009 - 12:08am.

I was the youngest one and now im seventeen. maybe you should come have an interveiw and re write the truth.

dajumbles

Submitted by soontobegone on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 8:44am.

Sure,leave your email in your contact info and I will email you.

Contact info

Submitted by dajumbles on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 8:20am.

dajumbles@hotmail.com
Be sure to leave your real name so I can properly attribute the quotes.

McIntosh plot

Submitted by Fyt35 on Tue, 10/30/2007 - 5:25am.

How ironic that after receiving the Platinum Nomination this happens, but it shows how difficult and dynamic our schools are nowadays. This could have happened at any school and I'm for one glad the early intervention of the PTC police stopped what "potentially" could have been a disaster.

However, there is a big difference between this case and what happened at WHS last year, there was never a plot or threat made at WHS, although the kid was wrong by having weapons in his car and was punished for doing so. Unfortunately for these girls the punishment will be much worse due to the "terroristic threats” that were made.

Stay on guard parents, there is more to parenting than just let your kids have their space, monitor all there activities!

Wow.

Submitted by mick613 on Mon, 10/29/2007 - 11:39pm.

Hmm...this is disturbing. I've still got alot of friends there, and I'd hate for anything to happen to them. I'm glad it was taken care of, though.

McIntosh High school

Submitted by concerned mom 30269 on Mon, 10/29/2007 - 10:13pm.

Does anyone have any additional details? Are any additional security steps being taken at the school?

Holy Crap!

Submitted by rzz on Mon, 10/29/2007 - 4:29pm.

Holy Crap!

Trend towards High School Violence ?

Submitted by ilockemup on Mon, 10/29/2007 - 4:21pm.

When I first flew on an airplane, my father told me that you say nothing and do not joke.

You don’t joke about bombs in an airport and you don’t joke about shootings at the high school. If you do you should expect to go to jail. The PTC acted properly.

Unfortunately I fear that our District Attorney has set a precedentby being soft on these things that is coming back to haunt us. The case below was a bad move.

KID BRINGS VIRTUAL ARSENAL TO SCHOOL INCLUDING HANDCUFFS AND DA SAYS OK TO NO JAIL TIME

You're wrong

Submitted by happynottobeasnob on Wed, 10/31/2007 - 10:09am.

The judge sentenced this kid against what the DA had recommended. Check your facts before you use this blog as a political forum.

problems

Submitted by tiberiu on Thu, 08/28/2008 - 10:53am.

The truth is tht our school have serious problems and will continue having them until the law is changed totally. Many kids need alcohol rehabilitation. Is that ok with you? Many stupid things happen while drunk...

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Girls, 15 and 16, in jail after threatening school killings

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