Thirteen-Year Old Arrested for Threatening to “Shoot Indian Trails [Middle School] Up” over Social Media
BUNNELL, Fla. — The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a 13-year-old after an investigation revealed the teenager had sent written threats to kill along with two photographs of a gun in a group message over Snapchat.
On Feb. 4, a School Resource Deputy, who is assigned to Buddy Taylor Middle School and investigating the incident, spoke with the teen. During the interview, the teen stated the messages were intended as jokes that got out of hand.
This is the second juvenile arrested this week in separate incidents involving written threats to kill, which is a second-degree felony.
“We treat every threat with utmost seriousness, acting swiftly to ensure that the educational environment remains secure,” said Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore. “This collaboration between the FCSO and Flagler Schools enables immediate action and investigation of any threat reported within our district. School safety is a collective effort that extends beyond the classroom walls. We ask parents to remind their children that written or spoken threats have serious, life-altering consequences. To us, this is never just a joke or a game, and we will take them seriously.”
“One would hope this 13-year-old’s arrest along with the arrest of an 11-year-old girl for writing threats to kill on a bathroom wall deters other students from this type of behavior,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office takes every threat seriously. Let this be a reminder for parents to be the Sheriff of your own home and to monitor your children’s activities online and teach them the consequences of their actions and how to properly handle disagreements. That education will last them for a lifetime. There is no gray area in the law, and telling us it was a joke is not a defense. The defense is to not do it in the first place.”
Students and parents, if you “See Something, Say Something.” Call 911 for immediate threats. Non-emergency tips should be reported through the Fortify App or online at www.flaglersheriff.com.
The juvenile was arrested for written threats to kill or do bodily harm to another person. He was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where he was transferred to the Department of Juvenile Justice.
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