LAUREL HILL, NC (WBTW) – Parents of students at a Scotland County middle school are upset with how education leaders told them about a possible threat.
Four students at Carver Middle School are accused of creating a “hit list” of teachers and other students. Dozens of parents with kids at the school went to a meeting Tuesday night with questions about the attack that investigators say four students were planning, possibly alluding to a Columbine-style attack.
Many had one concern in mind: the safety of their children.
“As long as there’s a potential for my child to get hit with a stray bullet, I’m concerned,” said one parent.
Many parents at Tuesday night’s meeting say they wished Scotland County Schools gave them better notification about the threat.
“I think that they have a lot of communication issues with the sheriff’s department they need to work out,” said Marion Locklear, who has a son at Carver Middle School.
The school district says it knew about the threat after a student reported an Instagram post Thursday afternoon. The district also says the Scotland County Sheriff’s Office asked it not to release any information.
The district says it was so the investigation wasn’t affected and because there was no immediate threat.
“We will continue to make safety our number priority and we will continue to cooperate with law enforcement, but once we turn it over to the police, we have to make sure that we comply with what it is that they do,” said Dr. Mary Hemphill, principal of Carver Middle School.
SCS superintendent Ron Hargrave says the district didn’t know many specifics about the threat at first since it was discussed on personal cell phones, not the school-issued Chromebook laptops.
“We would have been able to, through the filter that we have, to detect those words,” said Hargrave.
Investigators say the accused students made a “hit list,” including at least two teachers and several students.
Some parents want to know if their child was named and the sheriff’s office says it has told them.
“If your child’s name was on that list, you would have been contacted,” said Sgt. Sheronica Smith with the Scotland County Sheriff’s Office and the resource officer at Carver Middle School.
Some parents said they’re upset because no investigators from the sheriff’s office went to Tuesday night’s meeting. Others say they’re worried the school has no metal detectors and only one resource officer.
Dr. Hemphill says parents will get updates on the investigation. She also says she appreciates the input the parents gave in the meeting. As for class at Carver on Wednesday, more law enforcement will be on campus.
Teachers and other support services will also talk to students about their concerns.
