Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Police, Schools Respond To Vague Shooting Threat
FARMINGTON — Area police departments provided an increased presence at Farmington and Prairie Grove school buildings last week in light of a statewide threat of a school shooting.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a “general awareness statement” on Saturday, Aug. 24, regarding an unsubstantiated rumor about a school shooting that would occur in Kentucky on Aug. 28 and in Arkansas on Aug. 29. It said the rumor was not specific to any school in Arkansas.
Arkansas State Police also issued a news release about the threat the next day, stating it was in close contact with the FBI but had not uncovered any corroborating evidence or details in regard to the information from the FBI.
Mary Ann Spears, superintendent of Lincoln Consolidated School District, said it was “business as usual” at Lincoln schools last week because the district takes student safety seriously everyday.
She said she and police Chief Kenneth Albright talked about the alert extensively the day the FBI issued its statement.
“We really didn’t want to acknowledge it because you’re feeding it,” Spears said. “We have safety measures in place everyday.”
Spears said Lincoln heard from parents who were concerned about the rumor.
“We had calls and we had parents keep their kids home,” Spears said.
Farmington, Prairie Grove and Lincoln school districts posted on their websites they were aware of the FBI statement and were working with law enforcement to ensure the safety of students.
Bryan Law, Farmington superintendent, said school officials met first thing Monday morning with Farmington police to come up with a plan for the week. The principals then met to discuss thoughts and concerns about their own buildings, Law said.
Law said each of the buildings had about 20 absences Thursday (Aug. 29) but he couldn’t say how many of the absences were a result of the rumor. He said schools received calls from parents who were concerned and he did think some students did not come to school Thursday because of the FBI statement.
Farmington Police Department had officers at all five schools throughout the week, especially each morning as parents were dropping off their children, Law said. Officers also were in and out of the buildings each day.
Shawn Witt, security director for Prairie Grove School District, said Prairie Grove Police Department also provided officers at all buildings throughout the week.
Witt said the police department didn’t do anything different other than to have more uniformed officers on campus throughout the week to provide more visibility.
“We understand parents are concerned about their child’s safety,” Witt said. “A lot of it was to alleviate fears and concerns. Because of the vagueness of the threat, we didn’t feel a reason to be more alarmed than any other day.”
The increased police presence was also there to prevent someone from using the vague threat as an opportunity to commit some act, Witt added.
Lincoln Police Chief Kenneth Albright said SRO William Redfern was in and out of the schools all week, as usual. Albright said he stopped by schools also during the week.
“It was a normal week,” Albright said.
He said the school takes any threats seriously.
“You have to be prepared for it everyday,” Albright said. “That’s the world we live in.”
He advised people to remain vigilant for anything that appears suspicious or out of the ordinary and report it to proper authorities.
“You have to treat everyday like that,” Albright said.
“You have to be prepared for it everyday. That’s the world we live in.” Chief Kenneth Albright Lincoln Police Department