OCR Text |
Show Serious penalties for crank threats Law enforcement officers, as reason would dictate, are some of the first to know about a bomb threat. Very often the threat is made to the police directly, and if not, they are notified immediately. The most recent threat on a Cedar City School, Cedar City Police Chief Douglas Bolton said, came to the police through the mail, which could be a federal offense if the culprit is convicted. Handwriting, such as in a written threat, offers the police more chance for phoned in. There are methods and experts on that aspect of detection, too, however, Bolton said. Hawley said another reason the threats are given to the police is to "make them appear more authentic." Both Chief Bolton and Sheriff Ira Schoppmann had high praise for Dr. Gerald Hawley's reaction to threats on the high school. "Hawley's approach is fantastic," Bolton said. "He is accepting the problem and has set up procedures and guidelines to handle it. And he is still running the facility." Bolton and Schoppmannn said it would be wrong to reward or give in to the demands of those who make threats on the schools. "When we get the threat, we immediately im-mediately notify the school," Bolton said. "We cooperate fully with the school and let them handle the evacuation. We don't tell them how to handle it." Teachers are told to make visual checks of their rooms, both law officers said. If anything is found to be new, or out of order, or-der, or even suspicious, further action is taken. Sheriff Schoppmann said if a bomb was found it would most likely be taken out via a long, long rope, dragged by officers Bolton said other methods are also available, such as bomb experts. Lt. Bishop, of the local Highway Patrol, he said, has been through "bomb school" and could be a resource. Although the threats haven't reached 1 the stage they have in larger school districts, they are still a problem, the lawmen said. "Anytime you jeapordize 800-900 kids in an attempt to disrupt school, it is a problem," Bolton said. "It's a problem regardless of regularity. Do you gamble with that many lives? If it was me, I would turn them out every day if I had to." Schoppman said one of the most serious aspects of the threats is that people could actually get trampled in the evacuation of a building in a panic situation. Bolton said he has a lot of respect for the school's "information system"--the grapevine. In fact, he said, a squealing accomplice was the factor in one bomb threat conviction. "Parents and teachers should listen for any idle comment that is dropped," Bolton said. "This type of person has a tendency to boast. And teachers have their own information system. It's hard for the police to break in on that system." Those convicted of making serious threats on a public building, such as a school, Schoppmann said, are sentenced to time at the State Industrial School, if they are a juvenile and if their past record warrants it. After a stint there, the officials of-ficials at the school also have the option to keep the juvenile longer if they see the need. The most recent conviction on a bomb threat was sentenced to three months in the facility, he said. |