BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — It's someone's job to prepare for a parent's nightmare of receiving a credible threat at a school. What happens behind the scenes when those threats come in?
- Police have been investigating online threats to Batavia, Lockport/Newfane and Buffalo Schools
- None have been found credible
- There have been two threats in Clarence within three days
On September 16, a threat to Clarence High School was found on a nearby bike path. On September 18, a threatening comment was found on a Sheridan Hill bathroom wall.
"There have been 395 mass shootings in the United States this year alone, it requires a very proactive approach, we have to do something to disrupt the pathway to violence," said Lt. Jeremy Lehning, Public Information Officer for the Erie County Sheriff's Office.
The Process
7 News looked into how threats are handled by Niagara Falls City Schools and the Erie County Sheriff's Office.
The Erie County Sheriff's Office takes the team approach:
- Behavioral Threat Assessment Team handles and vets the threat and plans a way to disrupt the violence
- Community Engagement Team is out in neighborhoods making sure lines of communication are open
- Patrols stay active in the community
"Teachers, students, counselors, law enforcement, everyone needs to come together at one time to achieve a common goal," said Lt. Lehning.
"School districts especially need to put security on the same level because that's where we're at," said Bryan DalPorto, Director of Security for Niagara Falls City Schools.
The Niagara Falls City School District takes a layered approach:
- Getting in touch with local law enforcement and increasing police presence
- Starting bag checks on students
- Adding more security at the front door
- Utilizing crime analysts to monitor things like social media
"There's no magic wand to school security...every year here in Niagara Falls we try to do other things to ramp up security," said DalPorto.
At the end of the day, both say it comes down to communication.
They encourage parents to talk to children and remain active in school communities to know who to talk to if something goes wrong.
