'It's gotta stop': Oakland County Sheriff speaks out on rash of threats at the start of the new school year

(WWJ) — Two teenage students at South Lyon East High School are facing charges of false report or threat of terrorism, while another classmate is charged with intentional threats to commit violence against a school.

The threat of terrorism charge is a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, while the threat against a school is a one-year misdemeanor.

The charges were filed Wednesday, Sept. 11, a day after school officials said another student had come forward to report the teens had made threats earlier this week .

The incident comes not long after classes started back up for the new school year. Sheriff Mike Bouchard said at a press conference Wednesday there have been five school-related threats across Oakland County in the last week alone.

Authorities in Wayne County on Wednesday dealt with a soft lockdown for a possible gun on campus, while police in Monroe County investigated a school threat that was reported to a bus driver and forwarded to school officials .

During Wednesday’s press conference, Bouchard reiterated a message he has delivered many times in recent years:

“If you make a threat against a school, whether it’s something you intend to carry out or you think it’s a joke... in either category, it’s a crime and it will be fully investigated and we will seek charges with the prosecutor,” Bouchard said.

With the slew of threats to start the new school year, Bouchard said “it’s gotta stop.”

“People need to talk to their kids and they need to share information, which is the other key message I want to pass on. We don’t know what’s being posted or said, oftentimes, unless people share it,” he said.

“Thankfully” in these cases, Buchard said, people did share the information with authorities and that has led to charges.

This November will mark three years since a 15-year-old shooter opened fire inside Oxford High School, killing four students and wounding seven others.

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