Threat Call Came from Outside the U.S.
Chardon High School students were temporarily ordered to shelter in place Oct. 28 after two reports — later found to have originated outside of the U.S. — alleged the presence of a weapon in the building.
Chardon High School students were temporarily ordered to shelter in place Oct. 28 after two reports — later found to have originated outside of the U.S. — alleged the presence of a weapon in the building.
“The Chardon Police Department received a message reporting an alleged suicidal student in a restroom at Chardon High School. Shortly afterward, another service received a similar alleged threat targeting our school bathrooms,” CHS Principal Adam Tomco said in an email to parents. “Working swiftly, law enforcement traced the location of the IP address, confirming both threats originated from a source outside the United States.”
Chardon Schools Superintendent Michael Hanlon said officers arrived at CHS initially to respond to a single claim of a student with suicidal ideation with the potential to act on those thoughts.
A second call came into CHS later, informing the school personnel another agency had received a call with more details alleging someone with a gun in a bathroom.
“At the time of the second call and the additional information, the school went into immediate lockdown so that law enforcement could clear the building,” Hanlon said.
Tomco said the incident was part of a “swatting” attempt — when false emergency reports are made with the intent to provoke a large police response to a specific location.
The school took a safety-first approach and moved the building into a “shelter in place,” while School Resource Officer Jasen Elam and additional officers performed a thorough safety sweep of the premises. The precautionary measure lasted approximately 10 minutes, after which normal school activities were resumed, Tomco said.
In a separate email, Chardon Middle School Principal Craig Caroff said the situation at CHS led to a decision to bring CMS students in from recess and physical education classes.
Tomco said swatting incidents are meant to create unnecessary panic and drain local resources.
“We appreciate our strong relationship with our first responders. Their prompt action and professionalism enabled us to handle the situation in a timely manner, ensuring the safety of our students,” he said.
A study by the nonprofit Educator’s School Safety Network shows swatting incidents against schools have dramatically increased in the past five years.
“In the 2022-2023 school year, 63.8% of all violent incidents were false reports of an active shooter within the school (i.e. swatting) while 7.9% of all violent events were actual shootings at a school,” the ESSN said on their website.
Hanlon said the safety and security of Chardon students and staff is the district’s highest priority, and while the data suggests there are far more swatting scenarios than actual acts of violence in schools, every situation must be treated as a threat until first responders are able to evaluate the situation.
“We are fortunate to have a strong relationship with our first responders as demonstrated by their rapid and professional response to the incident today,” he said. “Our students, staff and administration followed protocols and did an excellent job of responding to the situation, as well. We have a safety committee meeting planned with our first responders and will use that opportunity to debrief the incident and evaluate ways that we can continue to enhance our response to scenarios like the one that occurred today.”
