A journal entry threatening to kill 15 students and 2 staff members was found at Shadow Hills Elementary about a month ago. Alpine Union School District says it was written last year by two ten-year-old girls at the school.
“I'm absolutely terrified," said Joe Colston, whose daughter goes to Shadow Hills. "My daughter is now begging me not to go to school. She doesn’t want to be there.”
Colston says he only recently learned of these threats through social media.
“The school district and the principal, they’ve failed us as parents and they're failing these kids,” Colston said.
10News was able to obtain a letter sent out to parents from the principal of the school. It states that officers searched the two girls’ homes and determined the threats were not credible. The principal wrote in part: “Any type of threat, whether intended as a joke or made in any other context, has serious consequences”. Superintendent Rich Newman says the girls were suspended, but he would not specify for how long. He says staff also checks the girls’ backpacks every day.
“I think expulsion is necessary," said Marty Bowman, whose daughter is enrolled in the district. "These kids need to see you just can’t do this stuff.”
Parents in the district say it’s not enough to ensure the safety of their kids. Bowman is worried his daughter could be a future target.
“You're going to make these kinds of mistakes as a child, it needs to be nipped now,” Bowman said.
Colston decided to pull his daughter out of classes. He says she’ll finish her education through independent study.