A Fairport high school student is facing a felony charge after allegedly posting a threatening message on social media in October.
A 17-year-old is accused of making a post threatening violence at Fairport High School and warning people not to come to the building that day.
The youth has been charged with making a terroristic threat and has been remanded to the the county Children’s Detention Center on $2,500 cash bail or $5,000 bond.
During the initial investigation, the sheriff's department determined that the threat followed a trend of similar posts that schools around the country were receiving at the time. Officers were able to trace the digital footprint of the post to the student, according to the Monroe County Sherriff’s Office.
“These aren't just a hoax. This isn't a prank. This significantly disrupted people's lives,” said Deputy Brendan Hurley. “This plays on the mental health of students and the parents and the teachers and everyone involved.”
Hurley said while the arrest provides some closure, there’s still more that could potentially be addressed with resources within the detention center if the act was “a cry for help.”
“If they're not getting what they need in life, there's programs there that can assist them and get to the root of the problem,” Hurley said. “We make an arrest, it stops or closes that incident, but did we fix the root problem? Did we fix why these kids are out doing it?”
The youth was arraigned in Youth Part of Monroe County Court, which handles cases for 16- and 17-year old offenders. The case may remain in Youth Part or a judge could transfer it to probation or to Family Court, where it would be treated as a juvenile delinquency case.
In New York, people are not automatically tried as adults until they reach 18 years of age.
In some cases, a teen aged 14-19 can be given youthful offender status if they have never been treated as such before and have no prior felony convictions. However, it is up to the judge in felony cases whether that status may be granted. Youthful offender records are not criminal records and are automatically sealed.
“The goal isn't to ruin someone's life,” Hurley said. “The goal is to fix the root cause so that this doesn't happen again."
In an open letter, Fairport superintendent Brett Provenzano said the district will also employ its code of conduct “to the greatest extent possible” regarding the student’s actions. That could mean a long-term or permanent out of school suspension.
“Parents, please take time to speak with your students today about this incident,” Provenzano said in a letter to the district community. “This should serve as a reminder that what we post online matters - even if it seems like a joke or a contribution to a trend.”
At no point was the community in danger, Provenzano said, but the post was still “a serious, criminal threat.”
“The district and our community cannot take threats lightly and each one of us has a responsibility to keep people safe,” Provenzano said. “Please continue to encourage students to pause and think about the ramification of their online activities.”
