School threat thought to be swatting incident
A threat of violence toward Bloomfield Hills High School via the 988 Suicide and Crisis Hotline on Wednesday, October 16, at approximately 12:30 p.m. lead law enforcement and school officials to activate a shelter in place, a sweep of the school with no weapons or credible threat located.
Initial information is leading Bloomfield Township police to believe this was a “swatting” incident, said Public Information Officer Nick Soley.
Soley said that every Bloomfield Township police officer was immediately dispatched and they began searching the high school. A complete sweep of the high school was conducted; no credible threats or weapons were located.
“While we are very early in this investigation, initial information leads us to believe that this was a 'swatting' incident,” said Soley.
Swatting is “the deliberate and malicious act of reporting a false crime or emergency to evoke an aggressive response (often a SWAT team) from a law enforcement agency to a target's residence or place of work to harass and intimidate them,” according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). “This means that the person doing the swatting reports a fake crime or emergency to get police or other emergency personnel to show up somewhere and possibly scare or cause harm to the individual, group or location they’re targeting.”
The Bloomfield Township Police Department said they take every and all threats to schools extremely seriously, and will continue to investigate the case with all of their resources.
“In our schools, all reported threats are thoroughly investigated both by our police partners and our district. While preliminary information suggests that the report did not originate from the BHS community, it is important to remember that the Student Code of Conduct prohibits threatening behavior and that those who violate this policy will be subject to discipline and prosecution,” wrote superintendent Rick West and high school principal Dr. Dan Hartley in an email. “We want to commend our students, high school staff, and police partners for remaining calm and following district protocols. Ensuring a safe and secure learning environment remains our top priority for both students and staff, and we are grateful for everyone's cooperation during this time.”
West and Hartley said they recognize that many students, staff and families are experiencing strong emotions from the event, and to provide support, the district will have their social workers, psychologists and counselors available.
“We are thankful to all of our area departments for their willingness to respond and assist us in this very serious call. Out of an abundance of caution we will be exhibiting extra patrol at our schools for the remainder of the week,” Soley said.
