TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A student who attends a high school in the Leon County Schools District was detained Wednesday after allegedly making threats of violence on social media.
According to a news release by the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, a 15-year-old that attends Lincoln High School was detained and taken to the county’s juvenile assessment center.
The student is facing a Making a Written Threat to Conduct a Mass Shooting offense.
According to the sheriff’s office, the offense is a second-degree felony.
The sheriff’s office confirmed that there was no active or credible threat to the school.
A concerned parent contacted a school resource deputy at Lincoln High School about an online conversation between juveniles. According to the news release, the conversation referenced violence at the school.
The school resources deputy immediately began an investigation to verify the information and identify the student involved.
The parent provided the school resource deputy with a copy of the post which was on the social media platform Discord.
The deputy was also notified that the student alleged to have a firearm on school property.
The school resource deputy identified the student, who was in a class. The news release says school administrators removed the student from the class and a search of the student’s belongings was conducted.
No weapons were found.
“We want to thank and applaud the parent who came forward and alerted the SRD, who responded quickly to investigate the report to ensure our teachers and students were safe,” Leon County sheriff Walt McNeil said in a statement. “These are severe offenses, and any individual who commits such acts will be charged accordingly.”
The sheriff’s office notes that it is illegal to make a threat of violence that may instill fear, even if there is no intention to cause violence or to do so as a joke.
