Lockdowns and hoaxes: Navigating recent school swatting incidents

Mar. 22—Madison County Schools dealt with multiple lockdowns this week as false threats were called into schools, which led to numerous first responders being deployed throughout the week.

RECAP

The incidents were deemed by law enforcement to be part of a trend called "swatting" where people make false calls to police to elicit a major response.

Fortunately, these incidents ultimately had no merit, but since the threat can't be immediately determined to be false, each call requires an appropriate police response each time.

For example, the first swatting incident took place at Madison Southern High School on Tuesday when a school secretary answered a phone call from a man who allegedly utilized a voice scrambling device when calling the school.

The caller mentioned both bombs and assault rifles and spoke "erratically," according to a school official.

Madison Southern went on a full lockdown while Foley Middle School and Shannon Johnson Elementary went on a soft lockdown.

Berea Police Department (BPD) reported that multiple agencies assisted in this response including Berea Fire Department, Berea Public Works, Madison County Sheriff's Office, EKU K9, Kentucky State Police, Madison County 911, and representatives from the FBI.

Then, Thursday, Kingston Elementary received a bomb threat that led to elementary school children being shepherded to Church on the Rock.

Luckily, according to Madison County Schools Community Education Director Erin Stewart, the church received the children with snacks and a movie while the school was searched by police officers and K-9s.

That day, Foley Middle School and Madison Southern also took precautions; however, they did not go on a full lockdown.

Madison County Sheriff's Office, along with BPD, Madison County Fire Department, Red Lick Fire Department, Madison County EMS and EKU Police responded to the call at Kingston Elementary.

Federal agencies such as Homeland Security are investigating as well.

Can anything be done to combat swatting?

There doesn't seem like there is much to be done to keep people from making threats to schools, according to officials.

Richmond Police (RPD) Chief Rodney Richardson said, "I don't know if there's any way you can curb someone intending to cause disorder by calling in a bomb threat."

Local parents and residents are left worried about transparency and safety.

Berea resident Laura Wick lamented, "It seems like this might be becoming an unfortunate part of modern life, where bad actors from anywhere can target a school, and that schools will have to develop stronger strategies about how to deal with the possibility of swatting incidents."

Richardson reported that local law enforcement agencies are already on it.

The police chief explained that all the the local law enforcement agencies work together on a school safety committee to improve the reaction to swatting calls.

"We sit and talk about these things and debrief incidents and make changes accordingly," he commented. "So, we're planning and practicing and changing the way we do things in order to respond more quickly and efficiently."

Deputy Michael Stotts with the Madison County Sheriff's Office said, "We will continue working with Madison County Schools and conduct an after-action review to discuss what went right, what went wrong, and how the response can improve."

Officer Barry Manly with the BPD additionally reported that BPD has increased the office presence at the schools, including the use of undercover officers.

A comment from the BPD noted that they have not found who made the local calls, nor were they sure if all of the calls were made by the same person, so they are still at-large.

According to school officials, this is also not an isolated problem. Neighboring counties also faced lockdowns this week after threats were called into Brodhead Elementary School in Brodhead and Glendover Elementary in Lexington.

Random swatting calls have also been made across the country, meaning that the caller may not even be from Madison County.

A drain on resources

Since nothing can quite be done to prevent the calls, officers must respond to each incident with the full gusto of a real threat.

Deputy Michael Stotts with the Madison County Sheriff's Office said, "Any of these calls we take very seriously. The safety of the kids, faculty, and staff is our main priority."

BPD Officer Manly echoed the sentiment, commenting, "We will continue to treat every incident as a real one until it's fully investigated."

While Stewart praised local first responders' and their dedication to school safety, she also expressed frustration with the pressure these incidents put on them.

"We have big school buildings. Unfortunately, that makes them a target," she said. "The really sad thing about this whole situation is these swatting calls, they draw so much of our first responder resources. It's a lot of expense, and it's a lot of time and attention from those folks. I'm sure they can be doing other things besides responding to a hoax," she said.

How much does it cost to disburse first responders? Unfortunately, there does not seem to be a concrete estimate as of now what these incidents cost.

RPD Chief Richardson also said that "it can become very expensive" with the number of personnel and the amount of equipment needed.

"Between police, fire and any other emergency service the total cost would be high," he said.