Teh One Who Knocks
03-18-2022, 11:41 AM
By Ray Miller-Still - The Courier-Herald
https://i.imgur.com/xFbLp1nl.jpg
A 16 year-old female Enumclaw High student has been arrested on charges of making a bomb threat last month.
On Feb. 13, the Instagram user “ehsvdayshooting” posted that “On Monday February 14th there will be a Valentine’s day shooting/bombing at EHS. 3 freshman are going full on armed with guns to shoot up the school at 10:20 am… 2 sophomores will be taking highly dangerous bombs to set off at 10:30 am… Come to school at your own risk… HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY B*****S”.
The post promoted EHS to close on Feb. 14. Similar threats against Enumclaw Middle School were made on Instagram Feb. 14, prompting EMS and Thunder Mountain Middle School to go into modified lockdown.
The arrest of the girl, a junior, was announced in a March 17 Enumclaw Police Department press release; the suspect was not named, as she is a minor.
EPD’s Commander Mike Graddon said in a recent interview that after securing several search warrants, the department was able to determine the IP address of the device that was used to post the bomb threat, which led them to the suspect.
“This crime is a class B felony, and if tried as an adult faces ten years in prison and a possible twenty thousand dollar fine,” the release reads, adding that no bombs or weapons were found. “It is still unclear at this time why she made the threats.”
It’s also unclear if the girl will be charged as an adult; the Courier-Herald has reached out to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, but did not receive an immediate response. Graddon said his department will be working closely with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to determine the best course of action in this regard.
However, it does not appear charges have been officially filed with the PAO, although the girl was booked in the King County Juvenile Justice Center today, March 17. Her first appearance in court, according to PAO spokesperson Douglas Wagoner, is tomorrow afternoon, when bail will be set.
Finally, it’s unclear at this moment what the differences are between charging an adult with a Class B felony versus a juvenile. However, whether the girl is charged as an adult or juvenile, “it is not a defense to any prosecution under this law of Making a Bomb Threat that the threatened bombing or injury was a hoax,” the EPD press release continued.
Graddon added threats made to EMS the following day are “indirectly related but part of the ongoing investigation.”
“We remain incredibly grateful for our strong partnership with the Enumclaw Police Department and other local agencies during these investigations. We are also grateful to students and parents who reported the original threat to the high school immediately through our Vector Reporting System,” Enumclaw School District PIO Jessica McCartney wrote in an email response for comment. “These reports are evidence that students and families care deeply about fostering a safe learning environment for all students and staff at our schools.”
In general, Graddon urged parents and guardians to have conversations with children about appropriate social media usage.
“Social media has got so many benefits, and it connects so many people in so many ways, but there’ also a downside,” he said. “And that downside is, people send images they might regret — we investigate those types of cases quite a bit — or they make comments that might be racial slurs, something they may think is a joke; we just want parents… to continue this conversation with our youth to keep them out of trouble. They may think it’s innocent, but ultimately, there can be victims, and in this particular case, it was extremely devastating and distracting to our community, to say the least. It put a lot of people in great fear.”
https://i.imgur.com/xFbLp1nl.jpg
A 16 year-old female Enumclaw High student has been arrested on charges of making a bomb threat last month.
On Feb. 13, the Instagram user “ehsvdayshooting” posted that “On Monday February 14th there will be a Valentine’s day shooting/bombing at EHS. 3 freshman are going full on armed with guns to shoot up the school at 10:20 am… 2 sophomores will be taking highly dangerous bombs to set off at 10:30 am… Come to school at your own risk… HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY B*****S”.
The post promoted EHS to close on Feb. 14. Similar threats against Enumclaw Middle School were made on Instagram Feb. 14, prompting EMS and Thunder Mountain Middle School to go into modified lockdown.
The arrest of the girl, a junior, was announced in a March 17 Enumclaw Police Department press release; the suspect was not named, as she is a minor.
EPD’s Commander Mike Graddon said in a recent interview that after securing several search warrants, the department was able to determine the IP address of the device that was used to post the bomb threat, which led them to the suspect.
“This crime is a class B felony, and if tried as an adult faces ten years in prison and a possible twenty thousand dollar fine,” the release reads, adding that no bombs or weapons were found. “It is still unclear at this time why she made the threats.”
It’s also unclear if the girl will be charged as an adult; the Courier-Herald has reached out to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, but did not receive an immediate response. Graddon said his department will be working closely with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to determine the best course of action in this regard.
However, it does not appear charges have been officially filed with the PAO, although the girl was booked in the King County Juvenile Justice Center today, March 17. Her first appearance in court, according to PAO spokesperson Douglas Wagoner, is tomorrow afternoon, when bail will be set.
Finally, it’s unclear at this moment what the differences are between charging an adult with a Class B felony versus a juvenile. However, whether the girl is charged as an adult or juvenile, “it is not a defense to any prosecution under this law of Making a Bomb Threat that the threatened bombing or injury was a hoax,” the EPD press release continued.
Graddon added threats made to EMS the following day are “indirectly related but part of the ongoing investigation.”
“We remain incredibly grateful for our strong partnership with the Enumclaw Police Department and other local agencies during these investigations. We are also grateful to students and parents who reported the original threat to the high school immediately through our Vector Reporting System,” Enumclaw School District PIO Jessica McCartney wrote in an email response for comment. “These reports are evidence that students and families care deeply about fostering a safe learning environment for all students and staff at our schools.”
In general, Graddon urged parents and guardians to have conversations with children about appropriate social media usage.
“Social media has got so many benefits, and it connects so many people in so many ways, but there’ also a downside,” he said. “And that downside is, people send images they might regret — we investigate those types of cases quite a bit — or they make comments that might be racial slurs, something they may think is a joke; we just want parents… to continue this conversation with our youth to keep them out of trouble. They may think it’s innocent, but ultimately, there can be victims, and in this particular case, it was extremely devastating and distracting to our community, to say the least. It put a lot of people in great fear.”