Students may face serious consequences for school shooting threats

A spree of school threats now has children facing serious consequences.

A 16-year-old is facing felony charges and expulsion after investigators said she wrote a threat on a toilet seat at North Fort Myers High School. A 12-year-old is also facing serious consequences for threatening Oak Hammock Middle School.

“You’re so worried about if I’m walking to school today, am I going to come home to see my mom?” said David Bahr, a parent.

Five threats against Southwest Florida schools in less than a week.

“The children are so focused on other things that they’re not learning in school,” Bahr said.

Cape Coral Police are now involved after threats were found at both Mariner High and Mariner Middle School Monday.

Patricia Bryan is uneasy. Her grandchildren attend those schools.

“Definitely nervous, definitely nervous,” Bryan said. “I pray. So I say just trust and let them go off.”

A 12-and-16-year-old appeared in court Tuesday accused of writing two of those threats.

“Even though we understand that kids, you know, don’t always understand the consequences of their actions, this isn’t something you joke about,” said Michael Beck, a criminal attorney at the Law Offices of Michael M Raheb Criminal Lawyer in Fort Myers. “This isn’t something that’s funny, it’s very serious.”

A judge ordered them to spend the maximum 12 days in the juvenile detention. Beck said what comes next is up to the prosecutor.

“Generally, a 12-year-old cannot be tried in adult court,” said Beck, who acknowledges the child is too young. “For 16-or-17-year-old, its up to the discretion of the prosecutor. Any felony can be moved by direct file to adult court.”

While police continue to investigate the latest school shooting threat, parents like David Bahr said more needs to be done.

“Everybody can help out,” Bahr said. “It’s not just police, it’s not just the school district. It starts at home.”