SHAWANO, WI (WTAQ) – A message in the snow is driving police and administration in Shawano to send their own message.
School threats will not be tolerated.
For the second time in two weeks, Shawano Schools were notified of a school shooting threat.
“They made a big sign in the snow with their feet,” Shawano Police Chief Dan Mauel said. The message “I go shoot up school” was found on the ground in a park. The threat comes a week after the first threat was located.
Mauel said he does not believe they are connected.
“They are similar in what the message is. The only difference is that we don’t have any idea when that first message was written on the picnic table. This one was stamped in the snow, so we know that it probably happened within the last 24 hours.”
Two threats in two weeks is a Deja vu that Superintendent Gary Cumberland is not happy to relive. He says serious or not, the threats are nothing he will tolerate.
“We have to put an end to it by finding whoever is doing this, and say here is what happens when you do those things, and make sure people are aware of it.”
Mauel said that is exactly what the police intend to do.
“We need to bring to justice whoever did this. If we can do that, and there are some severe consequences, hopefully, it will deter everybody else.
Chief Mauel said they had officers in and outside of schools, and while many were nervous, he said he also noticed many parents were happy to see them.
“People that do these type of things, that what they look for is to instill fear, to have fun, or they think it’s cool. When that stuff does not happen, they don’t win.”
However, Cumberland says he knows that the staff and law enforcement are trained and prepared to keep everyone safe, but people are getting the wrong message about the district, and that is also damaging.
“School is like a symbol of our community, and when things like this happen, it makes our community look bad. Today I had four phone calls from companies trying to sell us stuff to keep us safe. The perception is out there. It makes it look like what in the heck is going on in Shawano?”
After a school shooting threat last week, Shawano Superintendent Gary Cumberland thought the worse was over, but a second threat found in the snow at a park on Wednesday is leaving him frustrated.
“This is a form of domestic terrorism. They are causing fear, but I don’t think they realize what can happen to them once they are caught.”
Cumberland has alerted staff to keep an ear out for conversations in the hallway and report what they hear.
Shawano Police will continue to be present at the schools, and will also continue to investigate the threats.
