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A Hamblen County Student was charged with threatening a school after allegedly making threats to their peers.

On Tuesday, after registration day, an SRO was told that a student had made threats to their peers that on the first full day of school they plan to “shoot the school up,” according to a press release from the Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office.

“I am disappointed that we’re having something like this so quickly into the school year, particularly after I sent messages to the parents and guardians to make them aware of these kinds of threats,” said Hamblen County Superintendent of Schools Arnie Bunch. “However, I am happy that part of the message I sent out to parents is if their kids see something then they should say something and in this case a student stepped up and said something.

“The student had heard a threat and advised an adult, we found out and we investigated it in a timely manner and took the appropriate steps.”

After hearing about the threat, the department went into action. The student said the threat was a joke, but both the sheriff’s office and Hamblen County Board of Education said all threats are taken seriously.

“The Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office and the Hamblen County Board of Education are adamant that all threats will be taken seriously,” said Hamblen County Sheriff Chad Mullins.

“Nothing has changed with how we handle threats. We have a policy and we follow it. We investigate each threat and we will continue to take them seriously,” said Bunch. “We take each threat seriously and saying it’s a ‘joke’ is not an excuse for something that was done improperly.”

“Every threat is taken with the absolute most seriousness. This is a targeted emphasis of the school board for this school year and beyond, zero tolerance,” said Hamblen County School Board member Jerrod Weems in a recent Facebook post.

The HCBOE policy dealing with these type activities falls under policy 6-3091, “Terroristic Threats,” and calls for discipline up to extended expulsion for making a threat or disseminating a threat. Each case is looked at on its own merits, but this is the policy that guides each Principal’s disciplinary considerations.

Bunch applauds local law enforcement for quickly handling the threat and reassures families that the district’s priority is the safety of all students and staff.

“Our SROs and local law enforcement are working closely with us. We are acting very quickly in the event we hear of these and we are focused on the safety of our students and faculty,” Bunch said. “The safety of our students is priority one.”

With the recent threat, both the sheriff’s office and board of education asks parent to sit down with their students and explain the seriousness of these threats.

“I ask parents and guardians to sit with their students and talk with them about what should and shouldn’t be happening in the school environment,” Bunch said.

“Parents need to let their students know threats are not jokes and anyone making any type of threat towards a school or another individual will be charged accordingly. We stand firm on this,” Mullins said.

Officials did not release which school the student allegedly made the threat against.