Schools in several states threatened on heels of LA closure

Long Beach police said that an email sent to a number of school administrators early Thursday threatening schools throughout the district – similar to those received in Los Angeles and New York City earlier this week – was not credible, and police are investigating the incident with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force.

San Francisco Unified School District joins districts in Texas and Florida that received similar threats Wednesday night.

On Thursday, multiple school districts around Indianapolis closed after officials discovered a potential threat written in graffiti in a school bathroom.

And in Miami, school officials assured families that the district police would employ extra security to schools Thursday.

Fearing the safety of schools and its students, Cortines said he couldn’t take a chance, so he was asking police to search all campuses, adult school and early education centers before reopening Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles School District shut down every campus after they received an e-mail threat.

Officials from Broward County Public Schools in Fort Lauderdale said they received similar threats.

The move comes less than two weeks after two shooters killed 14 people in San Bernardino in what was the deadliest terrorist attack on US soil since 9/11. It said the validity of the threat received Thursday afternoon remained in question.

Danville (Indiana) Community School Corporation canceled classes following the alleged threats, including threats from two students who’ve been arrested. Nearly a third of those threats led to school evacuations, and about a third of those were disseminated on social media. Officials from Broward County Public Schools in Fort Lauderdale said they also received a threat.

Michael Dorn, executive director of Safe Havens International, a non-profit school safety organization, urges schools to work in advance with police and fire services to determine plans of action while also conducting simulations of potentially violent scenarios. Schools across the Dallas area were open Thursday.

In Orlando, Orange County Superintendent Barbara Jenkins said the threatening email was sent to the district’s general email late Wednesday, and principals have been asked to stay alert and keep students calm.

“I don’t think (the district) takes it seriously”, she said. Dallas police said they found no credible threat.