Teen faces serious consequences after alleged threat to Lexington High

LEXINGTON, Tenn. — We previously informed you of an arrest that was made regarding a juvenile who was charged after allegedly making a threat of violence with Lexington High School. WBBJ 7 Eyewitness News Reporter, Ryan Hodges, spoke with the Chief of Police for the City of Lexington to learn more about what these threats mean.

Thankfully, this particular online threat was found non-viable, which was determined during the investigation. However, this does not negate the seriousness of threats like these.

Chief Jeff Middleton spoke with us about what they do when they get word of a situation like this one.

“So we’re going to take steps to intervene immediately,” Chief Middleton said. “That is what happened in this particular case. We are going to follow up on that to determine the viability of that threat. Then we are obviously going to involve our school system. We have a partnership with them and the priority is the safety and security of the campus and the kids and the staff that are there.”

Regardless of the intent behind these threats, the seriousness behind them is all the same. The consequences can be severe if you are the source of a threat.

“It’s very important for young people to understand that, in today’s world, just the threat of that is a felony,” Middleton said. “It has serious repercussions. It’s really important to understand that even if you’re just playing, you’re just kidding, or you didn’t mean it, you can’t undo what’s happened.”

Chief Middleton spoke about how coordination between agencies, as well as the school system, is important during these situations, as taking quick action is necessary.

“It stresses the importance of coordinated responses between the law enforcement community and the schools,” Middleton said. “We have to have a strong relationship there. This relationship is why we were successful in taking action as quickly as we were here.”

In this particular case, the 17-year-old individual was charged with making threats of mass violence on school property.

Chief Middleton also says that coordination with the public is also a main factor. He says to not hesitate if you hear or see something, and  calling in is always the best option.

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