Three incidents at Clark County high schools in a little more than a week, two of which resulted in criminal charges against teenagers, involved threats of gunfire or the use of a pellet gun.
The schools involved were Camas High School, Columbia River High School and Hudson’s Bay High School.
Camas High School sent a notice Monday informing parents that a student had made threats against the school.
Another student told school administrators Friday about the threats, Camas High School Principal Liza Sejkora said in the email to parents.
The school immediately notified law enforcement, who questioned the student. The school cited privacy laws and the fact that the incident is now a police matter for its lack of specifics about what happened.
But charges filed against the 15-year-old in Clark County Juvenile Court offer more details. The Columbian does not regularly publish the names of underage criminal defendants unless they are involved in particularly violent crimes. The charges against the ninth-grader do not indicate that he took any steps toward shooting his classmates — but allege he made threats.
Three high schoolers overheard the boy telling a group of students that he intended to harm them, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in the case. The threatening statement students relayed to police varied, but they told officers the boy said something along the lines of, “I’m going to shoot/kill all of you,” the affidavit says.
The boy allegedly made the threat in a school hallway during school hours.
“Witnesses believe the statement made by (the boy) was likely brought on because upperclassmen were teasing (him),” the affidavit says.
A friend confronted the boy about the threat in a Snapchat conversation, expressing the fear he’d be killed. The boy responded by alluding that the statement was sarcasm. When police interviewed the boy at his home, he said he made the threat “but didn’t mean it,” the affidavit says.
Investigators determined there are no firearms in the boy’s home.
Now, the boy faces a potential charge of harassment death threats. He made an initial court appearance Monday in juvenile court, where he was appointed a defense attorney and ordered jailed until his arraignment on Wednesday morning.
Principal Sejkora commended the students who came forward with information and asked parents to discuss the incident with their kids.
“Students are often the best eyes and ears in cases like these,” Sejkora said.
In a separate Friday incident, a teenage boy threatened a Columbia River High School student with a pellet gun. A student brought the less-than-lethal weapon to the high school, and a 15-year-old, who faces potential criminal charges, took it from them, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Then, the boy either pointed the gun at a student’s chest or stuck the gun in his stomach, the affidavit says.
A security officer spotted the boy with the gun, took it from him and marched him to the office. The boy was arrested on suspicion of first-degree attempted assault, felony harassment and disrupting school activities.
Columbia River sent out an alert to parents about the incident on Friday.
Vancouver Public Schools also responded to a threat last week at Hudson’s Bay High School.
According to a letter from Principal Val Seeley to parents on Feb. 20, students were discussing the shooting in Parkland, Fla., that left 17 people dead. Some students shared concerns about threatening comments made by a classmate “some time ago,” which the teacher then passed along to school administrators.
Though the alleged comments did not appear to suggest an immediate threat, Hudson’s Bay staffed additional security at the campus that day.
