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Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Odessa District criticized for response
ODESSA - An alleged threat made by a seventh-grade boy at the middle school Tuesday, March 14 is being investigated.
According to law enforcement, resident Amanda Wallace allegedly told 911 dispatchers her 12-year-old daughter related that the middle school boy asked the girl, "When is the day I can shoot everyone in the classroom except (you)?"
The threat was not made with a teacher in the room, according to the report.
Principal Jamie Nelson allegedly told responding deputy John McMullen the boy, whose name has yet to be released, made statements like this in the past, but the school didn't take them as credible, according to the narrative.
Superintendent Rob Clark told a different story in a follow-up interview Tuesday, March 21.
"We believe all threats are credible," Clark said.
He added that an investigation is ongoing and said records of district disciplinary actions wouldn't be publicized.
"We're not talking about any student's pattern in behavior," Clark said.
The School District acknowledged the alleged threat in a social media post Wednesday, March 15, while saying the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office deemed the school safe.
But parents were not informed, Wallace said.
"Parents and the public were not notified of the threat," Wallace said. "I feel there should be at least a call sent out explaining the situation and the steps being taken to deal with the situation."
Sheriff Gabe Gants said the case was forwarded to the Lincoln County Prosecuting Attorney's Office for possible charges, but no charges had been filed as of press time, per Prosecuting Attorney Adam Walser.
Gants said his office referred the district to Educational Service District's Threat Assessment team in Spokane and sent the case to Odessa police.
At a School Board meeting Wednesday, March 22, Nelson acknowledged the investigation and said she is developing a safety plan for any future threats.
"I have been in regular contact with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office about the recent threats and we are working with the ESD threat assessment to develop a plan," she said.
But Wallace and her husband, Jeremy Smith, aren't pleased with the district.
"My kid should not be coming home and telling me a kid has threatened to shoot up a classroom," Wallace said during the School Board meeting. "The students have been instructed to ignore the student and what he said and not to tell their parents and to hide evidence of misconduct."
Smith said he experienced a school shooting situation at 8 years old.
He said his daughter shouldn't have to go through the same situation.
"I urge you to take this threat seriously, because my daughter should never know the sound of a bullet whizzing past her head," Smith said. "I moved here with optimism that this would be a great school, and I am sorry to say it's not."
- Reporter Ashley Parkinson contributed to this report.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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