Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Goshen Community Schools Press Release:

On December 15^th, at approximately 11:00 a.m., a parent called GHS to notify the administration of a threat that he noticed on Facebook. Within minutes of receiving the call, the student who allegedly posted the comment was brought to the office and the situation was handled, and appropriate discipline steps were taken. The student admitted that he was not serious about the threat, but thought it would be funny to make the comment on Facebook. The situation was immediately reported to local law enforcement. GHS will continue to work with the authorities in regards to this situation.

At Goshen Community Schools, it continues to be a priority to deal immediately with all safety concerns as we continue to strive for excellence in all that happens in our schools.

Goshen Police Press Release:

The Goshen Police School Resource officer assigned to the Goshen High School was notified by the school’s Assistant Principal of an incident involving a student making threats with a firearm via text message to another student. The threats were directed toward the entire school and suggested that the suspect would bring about harm to many with a firearm, not just the recipient of the text message.

SRO Johnson joined school staff in the office to where the suspect was escorted. SRO Johnson searched the suspect, his belongings, and his locker. No weapon was located.

Due to the severity of the threat and the history of the suspect, arrangements were made in conjunction with Elkhart County Juvenile Detention staff to detain the suspect until his emergency hearing in Juvenile court, Thursday, December 17th. The juvenile suspect was arrested on charges of Intimidation and is currently being held in juvenile detention.

Every measure was taken by school administration and police officers to address the juvenile’s threat and potentially prevent any additional actions or violence by the suspect.

The school administration has suspended the juvenile pending his expulsion hearing. The Juvenile court system will hear the case and determine what further action may be required.

Goshen Community Schools:

**The discrepancy between the two press releases regarding texting or the use of Facebook are due to the use of Facebook messaging, and texting Facebook screen shots. The press releases are about the same incident, which was reported by Goshen High School, and has been acted upon by the Goshen Police Department.