School district and law enforcement officials tell parents to talk to their kids about ramifications of making school threats

Oct. 21—Naperville and Aurora-area schools and law enforcement officials are urging parents to discuss school safety with their children and the repercussions they'll face if they make threats against a school or spread rumors about a threat.

A joint statement issued by Naperville School District 203, Indian Prairie School District 204, the Naperville and Aurora police departments and the DuPage and Will county state's attorney offices comes in the wake of four threats being made against Naperville high schools in the last month.

"These threats have caused significant disruptions to our learning environments, diverted substantial resources to investigate, and eroded parents', students' and staff members' confidence in their schools being safe environments," the statement said.

It was signed by Naperville 203 Superintendent Dan Bridges, Indian Prairie Superintendent Adrian Talley, Naperville Interim Police Chief Jason Arres, Aurora Police Chief Keith Cross, DuPage State's Attorney Robert Berlin and Will State's Attorney James Glasgow.

"Children need to understand that there is no such thing as 'joking' about bringing a weapon to school, planting a bomb, initiating violence against another or causing general chaos," the letter said.

They also emphasized what happens when such incidents occur: the police department will investigate and track down the person who sent the threat and then send the case to prosecutors, who will "aggressively pursue legal action" against those responsible. Separate from that, school districts can "invoke severe discipline" up to expulsion.

The "See Something, Say Something" policy means students need to report anything suspicious they may see or hear.

"Threats can be spoken, written, communicated using technology or expressed in other means, such as gestures or body language," the statement said. "Threats can be made directly to the intended victim, communicated to third parties or expressed in ways ranging from verbal threats on phones, writing on public property, in notes, on social media or over text messaging."

It's equally important that parents and students not share or post rumors or unverified information, which can fuel more confusion and anxiety.

"Instead, fact check before forwarding or responding to rumors on social media," the statement said. "This can be done by calling your school's office or your local police department's nonemergency number to ask if they are aware of a rumored threat of violence.

"Especially after the tumultuous few years our students have had navigating remote learning because of a global pandemic, we want nothing more than safe and stable environments for our students to learn and grow in," the statement said.

raguerrero@tribpub.com

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