Parents, district officials share disappointment over threats being made against Maumelle schools

MAUMELLE, Ark. – Many parents in Maumelle kept their kids home Monday as police investigate two school threats made amid the aftermath of a deadly school shooting in Georgia.

Authorities said they solved the first threat from a Maumelle High School parent quickly Thursday. The second perceived threat brought increased security to all area schools on Monday.

According to police, the Thursday threat was made over the phone by an angry and drunk parent who said he would blow the head off of staff of Maumelle High School. Authorities said that person was arrested and remains in jail for first-degree terroristic threatening.

The scene of officers surrounding the high school on Thursday was repeated at schools across Maumelle Monday as officers formed a protective shield around students, at least those who came to school.

According to the Pulaski County Special School District, some schools’ attendance was halved because of a reaction to a threat against a Maumelle school.

Meagan Harrison is one of the parents who pulled her kids out of class as she waited for details.

“It kind of gave me chills honestly,” she said. “I was like, ‘A school? What school? What’s the threat?’”

Maumelle Police Department officials shared many of the answers to parents’ questions early Monday afternoon. On Sunday, police said someone tipped the MPD about a screenshot of a social media post “that was thought to be a threat.” They said they learned it was being shared across the country, and during the investigation, a juvenile admitted to adding a comment to that post which launched the investigation.

Most of the schools affected are inside the Pulaski County Special Schools District. Superintendent Charles McNulty said they take every threat seriously.

“It’s disheartening. It’s unfortunate,” McNulty said. “It’s really unacceptable, but these are the times we’re living in right now.”

He and MPD Public Information Officer Cpt. Shannon Giompoletti encourages parents to talk to their kids about their feelings and the consequences of what they may see as a joke or lie. Terroristic threatening is a felony.

“This is something that can ruin their life, so hopefully parents at home are talking to their children,” Giompoletti said.

Maumelle police continue their investigation, but said Monday afternoon, based on context, they currently don’t see the post as a threat to a school.

“We’d rather you make a big deal and it not be anything than you stay quiet and it ends up being something,” Giompoletti said.

Harrison says anything from excused absences for these events to purchasing metal detectors should be considered if they can protect lives.

“I’m thankful for all our officers, I really am, but you can never be too safe,” Harrison said. “My kids are terrified.”

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