A disturbing “hit list” allegedly tied to a sixth grader at Sparrows Point Middle School has prompted an ongoing investigation by Baltimore County police.
Despite initially finding “no credible threat,” authorities are not denying the existence of the list, which reportedly surfaced on social media.
Baltimore County Public Schools addressed the situation in a letter to parents, stating, “We take threats seriously.”
The list, uncovered by FOX45, includes a text exchange where the student allegedly expressed intent to harm 14 classmates and himself to avoid “going to prison.” The messages read, in part, “I’m preparing to do something big,” and “maybe in a couple of weeks or couple of months.”
Attorney John Turnbull of Turnbull Brockmeyer Law Group said he received screenshots of the list from a concerned parent and shared them with the firm’s 42,000 Facebook followers. “One parent, and this is horrifying, one parent, found out about this hit list from our page and then subsequently found out that their child was on the hit list,” Turnbull said.
Turnbull criticized the lack of communication from the school and police, stating, “Not a single call from the school, not a single call from the police that is an absolute abdication of their responsibility as caretakers of the community and as educators of our community, to communicate those types of things.”
While the school system has not disclosed any disciplinary actions due to privacy laws, several parents informed FOX45 that the student received a 9-day suspension. Concerns remain about whether the student is receiving mental health services. “Look, everyone knows who it is. It’s not going to really be it’s not a secret. So in the macro, don’t we say to the community, ‘yes, he’s in counseling.’ You know who he is, we’re going to get him better,” Turnbull said.
Police have confirmed that they are speaking with the 11-year-old’s parents, community members, and school administrators to ensure all threats “have been mitigated.”
The investigation continues as parents seek more information to make informed decisions for their children.
