River Springs Teen Becomes 30th Charged for School Threat Since Parkland

Date Added: May 23, 2018 5:40 pm

Contact: Laura Williams, Office of Media Relations & Public Affairs

 RIVER SPRINGS MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT, 14, MAKES THREAT, FACES FELONY

With less than a week left of school, sheriff’s deputies are still investigating every suspicious event at schools. And students are still making false threats – and getting arrested. On Wednesday, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) arrested its 30^th Volusia County student for making school threats since the deadly shootings in Parkland on Feb. 14.

The latest arrest came Wednesday when a 14-year-old River Springs Middle School student cautioned his classmates: “None of y’all come to school on the last day because I am going to shoot it up.”

Around noon, Principal Stacy Gotlib alerted the school resource deputy that students heard the teen talk about bringing a gun to school on the last day before summer.  Both the principal and the deputy asked the student about the threats. Gotlib said the teen was truthful and said he walked up to a group of students and said he would shoot up the school next week.

The teen stated that he was joking when he made the statements. And he confirmed he does not have access to weapons or firearms. The student was charged with violating Florida Statute 790.162 – making a threat to discharge a destructive device, a felony.  He was taken into custody and transported to the Department of Juvenile Justice.

Since the massacre at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Volusia students as young as 11 and as old as 17 have been charged with felonies for making threats at school or on social media.

Inciting fear at school and in the community is still not a joke to Sheriff Mike Chitwood or school officials. Students and their families are being held responsible for the cost of investigating each suspicious incident – estimated at least $1,082 per incident.