Picayune school receives another bomb threat
Published 12:28 am Sunday, November 11, 2007
On Friday, the Picayune School District was the victim of another bomb threat, making for the fifth this year and the second at Picayune Junior High.
At about 12:05 p.m., administrators with the school district were notified that a bomb threat had been found in the seventh grade girls’ bathroom.
Capt. Bryan Dawsey said the threat was found at the junior high on the back of a stall door written in ink. The threat was reported by two students at which time students, staff and security personnel were evacuated from the grounds, said Assistant Superintendent Brent Harrell.
“Our number one goal is to make sure all the students, staff and officers are safe,” Dawsey said.
No bomb was found on the school grounds after a 45-minute sweep, Harrell said.
Several suspects are believed to be involved in the incident, however no arrests have been made since the incident is still under investigation, Dawsey said.
With the recent rash of bomb threats at the school district, principals have made announcements about the consequences of bomb threats, Harrell said. Dawsey said the Picayune Police Department and the school district have discussed ways to keep children from making bomb threats but no program or procedure to prevent them has been established yet.
In late September, four bomb threats occurred in one week, three at the high school and one at the junior high. Suspects, all juveniles, have been arrested in those incidents and were sent to the juvenile detention center in Nachez. The charge for false representation of an explosive device can lead to 10 years in jail and fines of up to $10,000.