Girl, 12, arrested in La Pine MS shooting threat

(Update: Adding video, Bailey comment)

A 12-year-old girl has been arrested on a charge of first-degree disorderly conduct after a social media post claiming La Pine Middle School was “going to be shot up” went viral Tuesday night, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said Wednesday.

Sgt. William Bailey said there had been no active or credible threats found at the school Wednesday, but an added law enforcement presence was continuing. He told NewsChannel 21 investigators will remain at the school all day to make sure they have all the information and that everyone is safe.

“Our first priority is keeping the students and the faculty safe,” Bailey said. “Even in this case where we did not believe there was a credible active threat, we still increased our presence. We still made sure that the school was safe.”

At midday, Bailey told NewsChannel 21 deputies have a few more students they want to question in relation to the incident.

Sgt. Grant Johnstone said deputies were notified around 8:50 p.m. Tuesday of the video post on social media that referenced a possible school shooting at the school, originating from a La Pine Middle School student, that “quickly spread throughout the community.”

Deputies spoke with several students regarding the post and one arrest has been made in the case, Johnstone said.

“The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office recognizes the safety concerns that parents may have after an event of this nature,” Johnstone said in a news release. “There will be an increase in the law enforcement presence at area schools.”

Bailey said Wednesday the agency has an investigator in the schools, “trying to track down what’s rumor and what’s fact” about the posting.

NewsChannel 21 on Tuesday night received Facebook messages that shared a fast-spreading, brief Snapchat video clip of a young female saying, “Heard our school is going to get shot up,” followed by a laugh, obscenity and “die already!” The person who shared it indicated the girl was talking about La Pine Middle School.

The school principal sent this letter to families Wednesday:

Dear La Pine families,

Last night, Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies began an investigation into a report of a social media post allegedly shared from an account in our community. They kept us updated throughout the night. This morning, they let us know that a minor was arrested, in custody, and charged with disorderly conduct in connection with the reported social media post.

Our families and students are truly exceptional. Within minutes of the social media post being shared, tips began coming in to law enforcement, through our reporting tool (Safe Oregon) and text message. In partnership with law enforcement, each and every one of these tips has been investigated, or is currently being looked into. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who took time to report the social media post, you are appreciated.

We talked to students during morning meeting assembly today and stressed that we absolutely will not tolerate copy cats of this situation. Additionally, we praised students for being upstanders and reporting this situation. We encouraged all students to continue to do their part to keep our schools safe by reporting things that they see or hear that make them feel uncomfortable or unsafe. We reminded student that they can use the SafeOregon tip line – found under under First Step on their iPads – can talk to a trusted adult, or call law enforcement at any time, 24-hours a day. We, and our law enforcement partners, are committed to following up on all tips.

We want to stress that this type of behavior is not indicative of La Pine’s culture or students. We have no reason to believe that our school is anything but safe for all students today or any day. And we understand that in informing our community of this arrest, we run the risk of giving the student who made the threat the attention they seek or other students copying this behavior. However, we felt it was important to communicate with our parents about this situation this morning.

If your student stayed home today, and you have not yet called to excuse them, please do so at your earliest convenience. An exception to participate in after-school activities will be made today for students with excused absences.

We believe that by working together with our staff, students and parents, we can expedite this investigation and help control rumors about the situation. Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Robi Phinney, La Pine Middle School Principal