Central Coast high schools locked down after social media threat
ORCUTT, Calif. - A threat of a school shooting posted on a popular social media site prompted a major law enforcement response in two Cental Coast counties involving three high schools.
The threat sent Righetti High School and St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria into lockdown for most of the morning class session Wednesday morning.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department backed up by the Santa Maria Police Department and the California Highway Patrol descended on Righetti High School quickly after the social media threat was posted.
Parents and family members of Righetti High students also flocked to the campus after the lockdown.
"Her daughter sent her a text saying, showing a posting that somebody had posted they are bringing a gun to school so everybody be on the lookout, that's why she's here, she said her daughter was freaking out, she was scared", said Rebecca Olivo, a family friend of an RHS student.
"My kid is the most important to me so I don't know, if I get a threat report, I'm going to be here", said RHS parent Naomi Gray, "I don't know what can be done, I'm just worried about my daughter in there right now."
"My first instinct is to come over here, to be there just in case something needs to be done, for her to come out, come out, to pick her up or anything", said Cameron Lopez who's sister is an RHS student, "its just ridiculous that people want to bring a gun to school and think that's a joke, or even if they didn't bring a gun to school and said that they did, it's just completely unacceptable."
After the announcement that the lockdown had been lifted at about 11:30 am, classes resumed but parents remained to take their children home.
"He's a nervous wreck, he can't focus after going through something like this whether it was fake or real", said RHS parent Dominique Requejo.
"Parents take care of your kids, be more a parent than you are a cheerleader in sports, be more a parent than someone who works and takes care of bills and stuff like that, your kids need you right now", said RHS parent Patrick Ortiz, "there's a lot of kids in school here that are going home because their parents say their kids our scared, and I can almost bet they are terrified."
Righetti High students held a National Student Walkout rally in the campus amphitheater during the Noon lunch hour to commemorate the victims of the school shootings in Florida one month ago.
The threat was determined to have been related to the investigation at Atascadero High School in which a student was arrested after being accused of posting the online threat. Once authorities determined the threat was unrelated to Righetti and St. Joseph high schools, the lockdown was lifted shortly before 11:30 a.m.
Klein said 150 Righetti students were pulled out of school by worried parents after Wednesday's incident. The school has approximately 2,300 students.
