Multiple “threatening calls” to 911 caused a hectic hour of police sirens and panicked parents at Mountain View Intermediate School on Tuesday, Jan. 16.
According to Macon County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jonathan Phillips, the second of three separate calls made by three MVI students from a landline at 2:07 p.m. contained a threat to a school. In the 911 recording, the caller says, “MMS – I’m gonna shoot this sh** up.”
That call followed the first 911 call made at 10:45 a.m., which Phillips said was a hang-up. Phillips said MCSO notified the school of the 911 hang-up. After the 2:07 p.m. call, the third call was at 2:08 p.m. and was the same students talking in the background but no one speaking into the phone.
“It was essentially kids calling into 911,” Phillips said.
At the Jan. 22 Macon County Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Josh Lynch and Board Chair Jim Breedlove commended MCSO’s Trey Chastain for directing officers to MVI “without hesitation.”
After the 2:07 p.m. call, MVI Principal Nancy Breedlove said they were notified of the possible threat and immediately went into lockdown.
“Law enforcement was on our campus within moments and swept the hallways and classrooms, confirming the safety of students and the absence of harm,” Breedlove stated. “As they did this, our students, who were silent, in classrooms, could hear the interactions of officers within the hallways.”
Dozens of law enforcement and other first responders responded within minutes. Most went to MVI, while a few law enforcement vehicles went to nearby Macon Middle School.
Macon County Schools Safety Coordinator Robert Holland served as liaison between the school system and law enforcement during the Jan. 16 incident.
“I maintained communication with Superintendent Lynch and his executive assistant throughout the event, Holland stated. “For example, one of the first things I did was assist in sealing off one of the entrances into the school and assisted in securing the perimeter as it was being requested by law enforcement.”
Holland said officers on the scene were already inside the school searching for the individuals who made the threat, so a secure perimeter was extremely important.
Franklin Fire and Franklin Police set up at the intersection of Dowdle Mountain Road and Wells Grove Road to divert traffic going toward the school. Law enforcement also blocked the bus entrance to MVI from Wells Grove Road. Macon County Schools locked down all its Franklin area campuses.
“Officers made entry into the school and were able to secure the premises to confirm that there was no active threat,” MCSO stated after the incident. “The lockdowns were lifted after the area was deemed secure.”
Afterward, law enforcement let the school buses waiting on Wells Grove Road continue to Macon Middle School. School buses were already at MVI, and around 3 p.m. the school started its student dismissal.
“Once the building and premises were secured, and it was determined that there was not an active threat, the lockdown was lifted,” Breedlove stated. “Our school met together virtually on Google Meet, where Sheriff Holbrooks and I could communicate that law enforcement had made sure we were all safe and we were going to dismiss students to buses and cars. Sheriff Holbrooks bragged on our students for their response to the lockdown. Together, we prepared our students as well as we could, that they would see officers within the hallways with guns, but that they were there to make sure we were safe. We then dismissed our students.”
At the Jan. 22 school board meeting, Nancy Breedlove commended her “faculty of strength…who took their training to heart.” Jim Breedlove said he was told by multiple officers that the school was quiet, which is what they want in this type of emergency, and that teachers were right by doorways in case of the worst-case scenario.
Holland stated he was extremely pleased with the professional response from numerous agencies.
“It was a team effort,” Holland stated. “As with any critical incident, there will be a thorough review which has already been initiated by MCS. As with any good leadership, we should always look to see the positives of how things went but also look to see what we need to do to improve on things.”
The next day, Wednesday, Jan. 17, Holbrooks released a longer statement to refute several social media rumors.
“I want to be clear that there was no hostage situation, no chases through the playground, no gunshots, and no taser deployments,” Holbrooks stated. “I have seen these accusations posted online and they are false.”
Holbrooks said multiple responding officers had their children in the locked classrooms.
“The truth is that students probably did hear yelling. Those were our officers communicating in the hallways and communicating to one another as we cleared classrooms one by one,” Holbrooks stated. “Students also most likely heard door handles jiggling, as we were opening each door to check the safety of each respective classroom. As we checked each classroom, we announced ourselves as the Sheriff’s Office. This is standard procedure for how a school is secured during a possible active shooter threat. We wanted to ensure that everyone was accounted for and that every child was safe, and we did.”
Holbrooks said there were law enforcement officers in SWAT-type gear carrying weapons as they were responding to a possible active shooting situation.
“Unfortunately, guns are a necessity in that moment in order to ensure we were able to protect ourselves and those in the building against a possible threat,” Holbrooks stated.
Breedlove said on Wednesday, the school held a debriefing and had additional counselors on campus for the students.
Charges filed
Phillips confirmed on Jan. 19 that detectives filed petitions of charges against the three students.
“We don’t go out and arrest juveniles,” Phillips said. “We contact the families and parents and set it up in the court system.”
One of the juveniles is facing charges of felony communicating a threat of mass violence of educational property, disorderly conduct at a school and misuse of 911. The second is facing charges of disorderly conduct at a school and two counts of misuse of 911. The third is facing one count of disorderly conduct at a school. The investigation is still ongoing, Phillips said. The names and any identifying information about the juveniles will not be released.
The students were suspended from school for 10 days, according to Lynch.
Lynch commended the faculty and staff throughout the district for securing classrooms and providing comfort in a matter of moments and law enforcement for their quick response.
“The events that unfolded today could have been a community’s greatest nightmare,” Lynch said. “There is no doubt that students and staff throughout the district will be processing the incidents of today in the days ahead.”
Hours after the incident, Macon Middle School Principal Mark Sutton commended the students and faculty for acting swiftly and efficiently.
“As with most events, we will have team meetings and review and reflect on our process,” Sutton said. “For tonight, I just want to say how proud I am of the students, staff, and all law enforcement officers involved.”
Tips for parents
The slow trickle of information coming out during such an emergency can leave parents and guardians frustrated, but Holland stressed that first responders have a job to do, and that’s the priority.
Holland said the best thing parents can do is “stay calm, be patient and pray.”
“I would hope that parents would know that there are people putting everything on the line to act quickly and will let them know something as soon as we possibly can,” Holland stated. “As a parent, I can say I know doing that is much easier said than done. The safety of your child and every other person in that school is our top priority. Truth is many of those responding probably have children and/or family on campus as well.”
Holland stated that communication about the incident will only happen after everyone is safe, first responders treat anyone who needs medical attention, and the scene is secure.
“Again, only when we know everyone is safe and the threat is eliminated will we take the appropriate measures to get the word out to families that everything is OK,” Holland stated. “To do that prematurely would be irresponsible.”
Holland stated parents should be mindful of the risk if texting or calling their kids during an incident,
“As an experienced law enforcement officer my training always has me looking at worst case scenario. Not to attempt to communicate with your child is a parent’s judgement call, but a parent who does should consider the risk you are taking and the possibility of jeopardizing the safety of your child,” Holland stated. “Imagine just for a moment that if your child is hiding during an actual shooter event and they can be heard by the suspect trying to text or talk to you. Would your call at that moment really be worth it? Again, not to call is a parent’s decision but as my law enforcement background and as a parent myself I would strongly discourage it.”