Lawrence police investigate social media post about school violence; no indication of credible threat
photo by: Nick Krug
Story last updated at 11:48 a.m. Monday
Lawrence police are investigating a threatening social media post reportedly made by a local student, though the department says there has been no indication that the threat is credible.
An anonymous tip to a state safety hotline alerted authorities to a Snapchat post that made a “non-specific threat of violence” if school was not canceled Monday because of weather, district spokeswoman Julie Boyle said Monday morning in a message to district staff, parents and media. The Lawrence Police Department then informed the school district that it was investigating the tip, Boyle said.
The social media post did not reference a specific school or person, and the name associated with the post did not match the name of any student in Lawrence schools, Boyle said.
Police do not have information to suggest that the threat is credible, Lawrence Police Officer Derrick Smith told the Journal-World. The department’s school resource officers received information about the tip Monday morning and the investigation was ongoing as of 11:30 a.m., Smith said.
Boyle said the district takes all threats seriously, “even those that may be intended as jokes,” and encouraged anyone with information to contact Lawrence police.
Lawrence schools did not cancel classes Monday because of extreme cold, opting instead to delay the start of the school day by two hours.
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