North Bay Haven Charter Academy student arrested for false school threat

BAY COUNTY, Fla. ( WMBB ) – Authorities are taking all threats seriously to ensure the safety of students and staff. The latest local school threat happened Sunday when a North Bay Haven Charter Academy student posted a picture on Snapchat.

The photo warns students against attending classes on Monday due to a possible shooting.

The post caught the attention of Bay County Sheriff’s officials, who visited the student’s home.

“We were dealing with a situation at North Bay Haven that we determined to be a false report of a threat. In other words, that’s not a situation where an individual threatens the school. They make up the threat and then they disseminate that threat. So that student was arrested and charged in reference to making a false report of a threat,” Sheriff Tommy Ford said.

The student is charged with a misdemeanor criminal charge. The student could also face school discipline.

“So it depends on the event and what has been found out through the investigation, but it includes not only out-of-school suspension, up to including placement to alternative schools or up to including expulsion,” Superintendent Mark McQueen said.

Ford said the sheriff’s department takes all threats seriously.

“We put quite a few additional resources in the schools this morning and today, and I reached out to my partner, police chiefs, and made them aware we’re dealing with these threats. We have the guardian program, which places armed volunteer teachers and administrators that we’ve extensively trained to be able to respond to those types of threats,” Ford said.

The schools also have monitoring camera systems, locking mechanisms, complete fences, and monthly safety meetings.

Ford said the sheriff’s office receives an uptick in school shooting threats after a major shooting, like last week’s shootings in Georgia. He said students do it to scare people or simply to get out of school.

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