The consequences of making a school threat or causing violence at Harris County schools are becoming clearer after data shows a double-digit increase in the number of juveniles charged with crimes since the beginning of the school year compared to the same time period last year.
According to the data, seven criminal charges were filed against juveniles last year between Aug. 1 and Sept. 19, 2023. During the same time period this year, since most schools started, 22 criminal charges were filed against juveniles. Several adults have also been charged with similar crimes.
KPRC 2 obtained the data through a public records request to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.
The charges range from felony terroristic threat to unlawful carrying of a weapon and are related to schools, according to the data. However, the DA’s office indicated the numbers provided are the closest analysts could get to the subject of the records request using the data available to the office and there may be some errant results.
A spokesperson for District Attorney Kim Ogg said prosecutors have seen a “definite” uptick in threats and perceived threats over the past couple weeks, and they have been instructed to treat every case coming in “as if this is our next school shooter.”
FBI Houston also had a record month in terms of school threat investigations with more than 55 reported in September across the 40-county metro area.
“We have to treat them all as real and so those real threats, when we have to investigate them, take time and energy and effort from us and our local partners and resources that might be used for something else,” Asst. Special Agent in Charge Christopher Soyez said. “Parents send their kids off in the morning to a place they feel safe, and the place they’re going to get a good education and be in a good environment. These threats really jeopardize that.”
KPRC 2 has reported on many of these threats or instances of campus violence that have forced lockdowns or secure modes and prompted significant law enforcement responses.
Soyez said it’s a combination of more threats being made and more people seeing them on social media and reporting them.
“Social media gives people a bit of anonymity, and we think they hide behind those and think that it’s not taking it seriously, but we do take them seriously,” he said.
The FBI encourages any threats on social media to be screenshot and submitted to school administrators or police.
“What we don’t want people to do is we don’t want you to share it, repost it, or AirDrop it. That only helps perpetuate the threat. But we want to make sure that law enforcement knows we can address the threat as necessary,” Soyez said.