New Juvenile Behavioral Threat Assessment Unit launched at VSO

Date Added: July 22, 2025 5:50 pm

Introducing our new VSO Juvenile Behavioral Threat Assessment Unit:

Sheriff Chitwood authorized the creation of this new unit, which became operational earlier this month in preparation for the upcoming school year.

The unit (JBTAU for short) consists of 3 school resource deputies and a sergeant who will track, monitor and investigate all juvenile behavioral threats in Volusia County Schools.

The mission of the JBTAU is to proactively identify and manage threats through early detection, structured investigation, and coordinated intervention. The unit follows best practices from the U.S. Secret Service Behavioral Threat Assessment Model and Police Executive Research Forum guidelines, and works in partnership with schools, mental health professionals, and law enforcement partners.

The JBTAU will maintain open communications with members of the State Attorney's Office for the 7th Judicial Circuit to ensure these cases are of the highest quality for prosecution. All Sheriff's Office resources and personnel will be available to the JBTAU, which will serve as a key component in preventing school violence through pre-crisis intervention and collaboration.

This past school year (2024-25), law enforcement in Volusia County investigated more than 900 Fortify Florida tips about rumors, hoaxes, social media posts, and other potential threats. About 3 dozen arrests were made countywide. Those numbers marked a significant increase over the previous year (2023-24), which saw 342 Fortify Florida tips and 18 arrests.