When a 'snap' becomes a school threat, here's what we can learn from it | Eve Samples

We can't know exactly what was going through the 15-year-old's mind. 

Was he making a weak attempt at humor when, on Super Bowl Sunday, he posted a picture of several guns on Snapchat with the caption, "If the Pats win don't come (tomorrow)"?

Was the "snap" a serious threat against his school, St. Lucie West Centennial High — even though detectives found no weapons at his home Sunday night; even though he told them he was joking?

The answers are unclear. The State Attorney's Office ultimately gets to decide what charges to bring, if any. 

What is clear: The teenager was testing limits and pushing against social norms, as adolescents always have. 

The difference, now, is young people carry some of the world's most powerful publishing tools in their pockets.

Missteps are publicly memorialized. Privacy is an illusion. Consequences can be swift. 

In the case of the Centennial High teen (whose identity has not been publicized), school district officials said Thursday he was not at school and had been disciplined. 

"We want to make sure that students are aware that any threat is not a joke,” said Kerry Padrick, spokeswoman for St. Lucie Public Schools. She declined to elaborate on the student's punishment, citing district policy.

We can understand why school administrators are not messing around. 

A year after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the mantra in Florida is "see something, say something." A new digital app called Fortify Florida makes it easy for parents, students and others in the community to quickly report anonymous tips. In fact, Sunday's tip about the Super Bowl post came in via Fortify Florida, as well as other sources. 

Local law enforcement and school officials say they treat all potential threats seriously — even when kids don't intend them that way.

Kids don't think about the expenses imposed on law enforcement, which must investigate potential threats; or on schools, which must step up security.  

It's not just Florida, of course. Social media threats (or perceived threats) are occurring at a dizzying pace across the country. Over the past month alone: 

• A high-school student in the Pittsburgh area was jailed after he posted a Snapchat video of himself shooting an AK-47 with the caption, "training for prom walk." 
• A high-school student in suburban Chicago was charged with disorderly conduct and placed on house arrest after posting a video on Snapchat in which he allegedly held a gun and threatened his classmates. 
• A student in Anchorage was arrested after making a threat on Snapchat involving his school, students and staff. 
• A middle school in Pensacola was put on lockdown after law enforcement became aware of a threat on Snapchat. 

The list goes on, with incidents in every region of the country — some of which will leave permanent marks on the records of young suspects. Last year, two middle school students in Martin County were charged with posting threats on social media.

Violent posts aren't the only perils.

“When kids exchange sexting messages, that’s child porn,” said Caroline Knorr, senior parenting editor at Common Sense Media.

Nothing is ephemeral, even if it might seem so. 

“Somebody can screenshot something, and it lasts forever," Knorr said.

Where does that leave us? For starters, we have a lot of work to do when it comes to educating young people about how to be responsible digital citizens. 

Teenagers are prone to risk-taking, impulsiveness and seeking peer approval. They are less inclined to think through the long-term consequences of their actions. 

Social media platforms exploit those tendencies. 

"That’s partly why they are so popular with teens," Knorr said. An edgy, boundary-pushing social media post is likely to get reactions, and that's often the goal. She calls it the "gamification of socialization." 

Let's be honest: Adults are guilty of this, too. 

And the more time people spend online, Knorr said, the more opportunity there is for risky behavior. 

That's not to say we should ban all teens from social media or scare them into compliance (though it's tempting). Knorr makes the case for a more positive approach. 

"We need to role model good digital citizenship. If we’re online, we need to show our kids what we’re doing right," she explained. "It’s part of modern parenting. We can’t ignore it now."

Knorr also hopes consumers will demand social media companies become more responsible, embracing ethical design that is less exploitative of all users.

Until that happens (and, really, it could be a while), the onus is on the rest of us.

There are encouraging examples close to home, if we take the time to look for them. 

Consider: All students at Mosaic Digital Academy, a virtual school based in St. Lucie County, take courses in digital citizenship using free curricula from Common Sense Media. The curricula is available to all schools across the country.

The technology can be tough to keep pace with. Threats posted on the video game Fortnite accounted for three of the 157 documented school threats in St. Lucie County this school year, according to Capt. Brian Hester of the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office. 

I asked him: Where is the line between wisecrack and threat?

“After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas incident, we don't have a line." Hester said. "We investigate them all the same way.”

It's too risky for law enforcement to let down their guard.  

For that reason, young people on social media must keep their guard up.

Eve Samples is opinion and audience engagement editor for TCPalm/Treasure Coast Newspapers. Contact her at eve.samples@tcpalm.com or @EveSamples on Twitter.