Officials at the Los Angeles Unified School District and the New York City Department of Education received emails that used almost identical wording to warn of jihadist attacks and bombs, according to the New York Times.
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Los Angeles police Chief Charlie Beck and Sheriff Jim McDonnell said all their personnel will be in uniform today and patrols will be stepped up around LAUSD campuses to help allay any uneasiness among students and parents.
“This is going to be more a deterrent for the copycat, the person who sees some big event somewhere and then says, ‘I’m going to call a school, ‘” he said.
Officials said the threat came in electronic form and was made to numerous but unspecified campuses. However, LAPD’s counter-terrorism chief said they need to know more about the perpetrator before they are fully comfortable that the threat is false.
Los Angeles School Police Officers Frank Avelar, left, and Jose Zamora leave Breed Street Elementary after conducting a safety check on December 15, 2015. But New York officials deemed the threat to be a hoax, and kept schools open.
The regular morning bustle was in full display at Venice High School yesterday as school buses dropped off students and other children spilled out of parents’ cars.
According to New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, that threat came straight from the Showtime series Homeland. “Just because parts of the email are false doesn’t mean it’s all false”, said Representative Sherman.
After receiving word that all Los Angeles schools would shut down Tuesday because of a threat of possible attack, many parents’ first thoughts were about how to discuss the scary situation with their kids.
“I don’t want this to be in the back of her head”, she said. The two traveled on to Williams’ high school before they realized the whole system was shut down.
School authorities do not believe the threat is credible, but they have implemented sweeps Wednesday night.
Sherman also noted that the email sent to NY was received at 5 a.m. local time and may not have been actually read until later, making it too late to close NY schools.
The sudden closure disrupted the routines of many Los Angeles families.
The Los Angeles message claimed the anonymous author had 32 accomplices, while the NY email cited 138 accomplices, Sherman said Wednesday.
“The email, which focused nearly entirely on Los Angeles, referred to San Diego in passing, along with other Southern California cities”, said Matt Awbrey, spokesman for Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s office. The case is being investigated by Los Angeles police in coordination with the Joint Terrorism Task Force and the FBI, Downing said. The LAUSD is the nation’s second largest school district.
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An hour later, NY students began arriving at school with no knowledge of the threat. But California officialdom – both in the law enforcement and political communities – erected a solid front in support of the 83-year-old Cortines, who is due to retire next year, as he’s done once before. The students at every school in the L.A. Unified district will be massacred, mercilessly.
