Juvenile Charged with Making Threat Against SV Schools

Saucon Valley schools were open Friday, a day after the campus was shuttered by what district officials described as a potential threat and “out of an abundance of caution.”

Late Thursday, the Northampton County District Attorney’s office announced that “the juvenile responsible” for the incident has been charged with terroristic threats and related charges by Northampton County Juvenile Probation.

The DA’s office said an investigation that involved both the Lower Saucon Township and Hellertown police departments began Wednesday, Feb. 25, after Saucon Valley Middle School staff contacted Lower Saucon Police “regarding a potential threat to the school district involving a firearm.”

“With the identification and charging of the juvenile responsible, there is no information indicating any threat to the school district or the public generally,” the statement said. “The filing of any charge represents merely an accusation, and any person charged is presumed innocent.”

“District Attorney (Stephen) Baratta stresses that the making of any threat, particularly involving a firearm, is a serious matter and will be addressed accordingly,” it went on to say.

Saucon Valley School District officials said in a separate statement that there would be an enhanced police presence on the campus throughout the day Friday, in the wake of the incident, and that counselors would be available for any students who might need to speak to them.

“We want to extend our deepest gratitude to the students and community members who stepped forward,” the statement said. “Your willingness to ‘see something, say something’ is the most effective tool we have in keeping our schools safe.”

In a letter to parents Thursday, Saucon Valley Superintendent Jaime Vlasaty shared a timeline of events that led to the closing of schools, which she said began when a school resource officer and administrators conducted interviews with students about “reports of a planned, off-campus altercation involving juveniles rumored to take place after school hours.”

Local police were then contacted, and officers came to the campus to assist with the investigation.

Around 9:15 a.m. Wednesday, Vlasaty said “misinformation began to circulate, with individuals incorrectly sharing that an active incident (was) happening at the school.”

She stressed that there was never an active threat to the school and that operations and classes continued as normal Wednesday while police continued to investigate the earlier reports.

Around 3:40 p.m., Vlasaty said the district received information through the Safe2Say threat reporting platform regarding “a potential threat circulating on social media and text messages.”

District staff immediately contacted law enforcement about the new information, and that evening sent a message to students, parents and staff about an additional police presence that was being coordinated for the campus on Thursday. Parents were also given the option to keep their students home that day.

Around 9:20 p.m., Vlasaty said additional reports were received via Safe2Say, which were relayed to police. About an hour later, she said the decision was made to close schools Thursday “out of an abundance of caution and in the interest of student and staff safety.”

Vlasaty noted in her letter that AI fueled the spread of misinformation Wednesday.

“Because our School Police Officer initiated the report from our campus, an AI interpretation of the dispatch was distributed through an online app and mistakenly listed the school as the site of an active incident,” she said.

“At no point was a weapon or physical threat present on the Saucon Valley campus during the school day,” she stressed.

Vlasaty said she wanted to be transparent about what happened and how the decision-making process unfolded as part of her commitment to the safety of students, staff and the community.

“I am committed to being as transparent as possible while balancing the need to protect the integrity of ongoing investigations, either by our law enforcement or by the district,” she said.