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FCHS gets threat rumors along with McIntoshThu, 11/01/2007 - 3:26pm
By: The Citizen
Search warrant for McIntosh weapon turns up empty; 3 officers patrolling McIntosh ... 2 officers at FCHS Fayette County High School hasn't been immune to receiving rumors of threats against the school, officials said. The rumors are on the heels of trouble reported in Peachtree City where two girls were arrested by police after they threatened online to shoot up McIntosh High School. Police are investigating at least one of the rumors at FCHS for possible criminal prosecution. Principal Dr. Charles Warr has had to discipline several students for spreading false rumors among the school, said schools spokesperson Melinda Berry-Driesbach. Berry-Driesbach said Warr has investigated each claim but none have turned out to be legitimate. Though the two girls from the McIntosh incident remain in jail, ominous text messages zipped between students at McIntosh High School Wednesday, warning students to leave the school by lunchtime, which prompted many parents to check their kids out of school, officials reported. Wednesday's text messages added to the emotional edge that many McIntosh students were already on. The two girls accused of making the online threats were arrested Monday, police said, and remain in jail and unidentified as they are juveniles under Georgia law. The situation appears to have calmed down considerably today at McIntosh, officials indicated. Officials initially were unable to determine where Wednesday’s text messages originated, but if the initial sender is identified, they could face criminal charges also, police and school officials said. “It could be someone who just wanted to get out of school,” said Peachtree City Police Chief James Murray. Murray said police are following up on all credible leads, even the ones that came from text messages, but so far none have turned out to be legitimate. Police even served a search warrant at a home Wednesday looking for a weapon, but none was found there, Murray said. School officials interviewed students who were friends of the two girls who have been arrested for threatening on a MySpace web site to shoot up the school, Berry-Driesbach said. Because they were unable to confirm who sent the original message Wednesday, school officials couldn’t take any action to remove them from campus, Berry-Driesbach said. The text message that led to the panic was forwarded several times at least, officials said. The school was on a heightened alert Wednesday with rumors flying about friends of the two arrested girls threatening to carry out the shooting. In response, teachers manned the halls between classes and a number of police officers were present in the morning to help everyone feel safe. Also the school asked police to continually patrol the outside of campus too to make sure everything was safe, Berry-Driesbach said. “We are doing everything we know to have a safe environment at McIntosh,” Berry-Driesbach said. Berry-Driesbach said its important for students to report any suspicious activity they see or suspicious information they hear, even if it’s second, third or fourth-hand. The information should be shared with a parent, teacher or school administrator, she said. Conversely, anyone spreading unfounded rumors is only helping to increase the fear of everyone at the school, which is counter-productive, she added. login to post comments
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