BEAUMONT, Texas — The Beaumont school district apologized Thursday morning for not immediately notifying parents about a threat that Beaumont ISD Police looked into on Wednesday and deemed not to be credible.
On Wednesday, a Marshall Middle School student was accused of causing a threat but after police investigated they found the threat to be "non-credible," according to a Thursday morning post by the school's principal Murrell Stewart. He also noted, in the post made to a Marshall parent's group on Facebook, that the campus would have extra security on Thursday.
Several parents commenting on the Facebook group post noted that they were keeping their students home for the day while others were upset that the district had not immediately sent out a notice about the incident.
At 8 a.m. Thursday morning, Marshall parents received an email from the district noting that the district was aware of discussion on social media about the incident.
The district's email told parents that BISD Police are investigating and that there would be an additional officer on the campus on Thursday.
"We brought several just to, we thought that would reassure the parents that we were on top of things," said BISD Police Captain Eric Payne.
Payne says the threat, posted on social media, was brought to his attention Wednesday night around 7 p.m.
"It was in reference to a student shooting up the school," he said.
Just after 9 a.m. Marshall parents received recorded phone message from the district apologizing for not notifying parents about the alleged threat on Wednesday when the district first learned of it.
"There have been so many non-credible threats. I don't know that we've had a true credible threat. So if we were to continue to inform parents immediately every time these things come out, we would constantly be in a position where we would be alerting parents to things that are actually not credible," said BISD Superintendent Dr. Shannon Allen.
Students kept home by parents as a precaution will have their absences excused, according to a post by Stewart in the Facebook group.
Payne says he advised the Dr. Allen to not notify parents immediately, because they didn't find the threat credible.
"We check out everything. We are coming to your house. If we get a text or something that someone is gonna shoot up a school tomorrow and we have a name," Payne said.
BISD says it takes every threat seriously and needed time to gather more information.
"We felt like based on the information we recieved that sending the information the next morning was appropriate for our families and parents," said Dr. Allen.
Here's the full text of the all-call message sent to parents...
"Good morning, Marshall Middle school parents. We are following up on the notification of the message you received this morning through our all-call system regarding the threat made against our Marshall Middle school campus. We apologize for not sharing this information on social media last night when we first became aware of the situation. Our goal was to prevent unnecessary alarm until a thorough investigation had been conducted.
Rest assured that Beaumont ISD followed all safety protocols working closely with Beaumont ISD Police and local law enforcement to ensure the well being of our students. Given the recent statewide alert from the Texas Education Agency. We understand that schools across Texas have been dealing with similar threats. Beaumont ISD is fully cooperating with the Texas Department of Public Safety and local authorities to investigate the situation.
In addition to the increased police presence on campus, we will continue to implement daily safety measures including having all students walk through metal detectors and conducting backpack searches to ensure a secure educational environment. As always, we take all threats seriously and those responsible will face appropriate consequences. We thank you for your continued support and patience as we prioritize the safety and security of our students."
Here's the full text of the district's Thursday morning email...
"We are aware that there has been discussion on social media about a threat made against the campus.
BISD Police have begun an investigation into the matter and the campus will have additional officer presence to ensure the safety of everyone in and around the building.
Our District takes all threats seriously and those involved in this scare will face appropriate consequences."
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
The Crime Stoppers tip line and app are available and have been used by students and parents to report school threats according to Crime Stoppers Director Jeremy Raley.
He says it's good for kids and staff to know the app is always available and that anyone can report concerning behavior that they may be too scared to talk about, personally.
"It's another tool in the school's tool bag and the students because they learn a lot more than they are giving up information on. They are around the students all day long," Raley said.
RELATED | "We don't take it as a joke" : Crime Stoppers tip may have prevented Vidor ISD school shooting
It's also important for parents to make sure they are aware of what is being posted to social media according to Raley.
"Have that relationship with your child that way if they see something they aren't comfortable with they can approach you and report it," Raley said.
If you have information about a crime you could earn a cash reward of up to $1000 by providing an ANONYMOUS tip to Crime Stoppers of Southeast Texas.
Call 833-TIPS (8477) or download the P3Tips App on your mobile device to submit your tip anonymously.