For the second straight week, the Kingston City School District (KCSD) announced news of a threat against one of its middle schools, this time M. Clifford Miller.
On Friday, October 4, the KCSD shared a bulletin on its official website that administrators at Miller were notified of a threat, and the student was identified by the Miller school resource officer (SRO). As was the case with a similar situation at J. Watson Bailey Middle School a week ago, the district said the threat was deemed non-credible, this time including support from the Kingston Police Department. According to the district, the student will be disciplined in accordance with the school’s Code of Conduct.
Unlike the Bailey incident, the threats at Miller quickly spread on social media, leading to “unnecessary fear and panic.”
“It’s crucial for our students to understand the importance of ‘Reporting Threats, Not Reposting Them,” especially when it comes to vague or random social media posts,” read the KCSD popup message. “Reposting unverified claims about potential school violence can cause unnecessary fear and panic, as we saw today.”
On Thursday, October 3, at approximately 8:42 p.m., the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office became aware of social media posts containing “threats of violence aimed at schools within Ulster County.” In their statement, the Sheriff’s Office noted that the investigation followed threads which were being shared on an unspecified social media platform. The threats were ultimately found to be not credible. The Sheriff’s Office did not confirm whether there was a connection between those threats and those made against Miller Middle School, but they did say they’d identified “the juveniles” responsible.
On October 4, the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office reported the arrest of a 16-year-old junior at Rondout Valley High School in an incident that occurred on Tuesday, September 17. Administrators at Rondout Valley High received a report of a potential weapon on campus, and after notifying the SRO, both the high school and middle school went into lockdown. After the arrival of support from the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office and New York State Police, the student was identified and an investigation found a Springfield Armory BB gun in his backpack. The gun was found to be “notably devoid” of a CO2 cartridge and pellets.
The Rondout High student was charged on October 4 with Unlawful Possession of a Weapon on School Grounds and issued an appearance ticket, returnable to the Town of Rochester Justice Court for a future date and time.
Though not occurring on school grounds, the Kingston City Police Department (KPD) arrested an 18-year-old male on Thomas Street on Thursday, October 3 after he allegedly attempted to hide a loaded handgun from officers. According to the KPD, he was charged with Tampering with Physical Evidence, Criminal Possession of a Weapon, and Criminal Possession of a Loaded Firearm, all felonies. He was also charged with misdemeanor Obstructing Governmental Administration after allegedly trying to flee.
Due to their ages, none of the youths allegedly involved in any of the incidents were named by law enforcement.
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