Local schools, law enforcement respond to ‘non-specific’ threats

With local school and law enforcement officials on high alerts after threats were made mentioning local schools, Greencastle Police Asst. Chief Ed Wilson patrols the hallways of Greencastle Middle School Thursday morning. Based on a social media trend that has swept much of the country, investigators could find no credibility to the threats, but treated them seriously just the same.

Banner Graphic/JARED JERNAGAN

While school resource officers have become the norm in Putnam County and across the country, Thursday looked a little different at Putnam County schools.

Responding to “non-specific threats” to school safety made via social media, local police departments maintained a strong presence throughout the day at the 14 school buildings spread across four corporations.

Local police responded with two approaches — investigating the threats themselves while also providing added security at the school buildings.

“We’re trying to work together as a big team providing the best coverage we can,” Putnam County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Tom Sutherlin told the Banner Graphic. “And we hope that our investigators are able to track something down.”

That big team includes not only the Sheriff’s Office providing coverage across the county, but the Greencastle Police Department at Greencastle Community Schools, the Cloverdale student resource officer from the Cloverdale Police Department and the North Putnam SRO from the Bainbridge Police Department. The Sheriff’s Office provides SRO service for South Putnam.

The threats are part of a larger trend of vague threats to schools across the state and country in recent days.

A letter regarding the situation was sent out late Wednesday evening to parents and guardians across the county:

This evening, we were informed of a potential threat to the safety of schools across Putnam County. The threat, though non-specific and not directed at any individual school, did reference all schools within the county.

All four Putnam County superintendents, along with multiple school administrators, have been in continuous contact with law enforcement agencies including the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department and local police departments to ensure that every precaution is being taken.

The letter was attributed to all four county superintendents — Dustin LeMay of North Putnam, Jeff Gibboney of Greencastle, Corey Smith of South Putnam and Greg Linton of Cloverdale.

Greencastle Police Asst. Chief Ed Wilson told the Banner Graphic that investigators from multiple agencies have been working to track down the source of the threats.

“As of right now, we don’t have any credible threats to go on,” Wilson said, noting like the superintendents that this is part of a trend. “These are events that have been all over the state.”

Earlier on Wednesday, two juveniles were arrested in Vigo County for allegedly making threats against those schools.

Even in Putnam County, Cloverdale Schools officials were addressing possible threats as early as Tuesday.

Wilson, who is also the president of the Greencastle School Board, said officials in Greencastle were aware of these threats, but that they were not specific to Greencastle Schools.

That all changed Wednesday evening, when threats were found to have mentioned all four Putnam County school corporations.

Unfortunately, Wilson noted, while shares of the post were found, investigators could not find the originator.

“It’s all been through sharing, we haven’t actually found an original post,” Wilson said.

Putnam County Sheriff Jerrod Baugh particularly emphasized this point, saying that the amount of sharing on social media prior to notification of authorities makes investigating the matter that much more challenging.

“Parents, talk to your kids about what’s going on,” Baugh said. “If they see something on social media, don’t take a picture and send it out to everybody. When we say, ‘If you see something, say something,’ this isn’t what we mean. If you want to take a screenshot, show it to your parent or guardian, not just your friends, because then it’s been around 1,000 times before we ever see it.

“If it’s something law enforcement needs to know about, don’t spread it on your social media beforehand.”

To that point, Greencastle Police Chief Chris Jones noted that the more the information gets shared via social media, the more twisted it becomes.

“It’s kind of like the telephone game,” Jones said. “Every time someone shares it, they add something to it.”

In a follow-up letter sent Thursday afternoon, the four superintendents offered advice on how parents can help in these situations:

1. Report any threatening messages your child receives immediately to local authorities and school officials.

5. Encourage open communication with your children about their concerns or observations.

The letter further noted, “It’s crucial to understand that these social media threats are part of a concerning statewide and nationwide trend.”

Wilson pointed out that no actual school violence has accompanied this latest trend of making threats.

As of shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday, the same had held true for Putnam County schools, with the officers finding no evidence of any substance to the threats to that point.

“There has been no school violence that we have seen,” Wilson said. “Someone has made a threat on social media, and it’s just blown up from there because people just share it without notifying authorities.”

Still, with nearly 50 documented school shootings in the U.S. so far in 2024, officials could not be too cautious.

A number of parents across the county apparently agreed, as anecdotal evidence suggested a larger-than-normal number of absences, though no numbers were available as of Thursday afternoon.

“These threats are very non-specific, but they have to be treated with the appropriate caution,” Baugh said.

With that in mind, the police presence was notable on Thursday, with officers stationed near entrances at drop-off times then rotating in and out of schools throughout the day, monitoring not only the halls but the parking lots as well. The police presence was especially notable at pick-up and drop-off times.

“We want to provide not only security but some piece of mind for parents that when they pull in, we’re going to be there,” Wilson said.

The four corporation superintendents, as well as individual building principals, maintained communication with one another and with law enforcement throughout the day on Thursday.

“When any statement is made about school safety, it is taken seriously,” Wilson said.

Finally, the superintendents also emphasized to parents how seriously they are taking the threats.

“We are leveraging every resource at our disposal to resolve this situation quickly and effectively,” their Thursday letter stated. “Our collaboration with law enforcement is comprehensive and all entities are committed to providing and maintaining safe learning environments and working environments for our students and staff.

Additionally, counseling services are available for any students who may feel distressed from the situation. Parents and guardians are encouraged to contact their child’s school for more information.

“Thank you for your trust, cooperation and vigilance during this challenging time,” the letter concluded. “Together, we will ensure the safety and security of all Putnam County students.”