Student to face charges after written bomb threats force evacuation at Northwest Cabarrus High, authorities say

CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. (WBTV) – A student will be charged after handwritten bomb threats led to the evacuation of a Cabarrus County school two days in a row, authorities said.

According to the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement was informed that staff at Northwest Cabarrus High School received handwritten notes on Sept. 19 and Sept. 20 detailing bomb threats at the school for those respective days.

The school was evacuated on both occasions due to concerns for student and staff safety, according to authorities.

Investigators and representatives with Cabarrus County Schools were able to identify a student who wrote and distributed the notes, a news release stated.

Authorities said they searched the student’s home and confirmed the individual did not have access to materials as mentioned in the note.

The Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice are working together on the investigation and charges are pending, the release stated.

David Wall is the Division of Juvenile Justice’s Chief Court Counselor. He says they were notified of the threats and the identified juvenile on Wednesday.

“We became aware of what was going on in the schools yesterday and we got a call from the Sheriff’s Office informing us that they were charging a juvenile with communicating violence on school grounds of mass destruction,” Wall said.

According to NC general statute 14-277.6, it is a felony to communicate threats of mass violence to an educational institution including extracurricular activities that are put on by educational institutions.

It is a class H felony and is punishable by up to 39 months in prison.

“Step two is getting the family in and completing assessments, have some conversations, finding out what’s going on, what led to the matter, and then the DA’s office will decide how to prosecute,” Wall said.

The Divison of Juvenile Justice’s Deputy Secretary William Lassiter wants all teenagers to realize that sending threats not only harms people in the school but also people in the community, and first responders.

“The state takes this very seriously when threats are made on school campuses and there are very serious consequences for young people that do that,” Lassiter.

Lassiter says teens can be committed to a long-term facility or have to pay restitution for the time and money put toward these extensive investigations.

Northwest Cabarrus High was one of four Cabarrus County schools that were evacuated on Tuesday due to threats.

Additionally, law enforcement agencies have investigated threats made against and near four other schools in Mecklenburg, Iredell, and Gaston counties this week.

From the 2019-2020 school year to the 2021-2022 school year the Division of Juvenile Justice is reporting a 41.20% increase in school-based offenses (SBO) including bomb threats, weapons, and fights on school property. In addition, the total number of complaints has gone up by 24.77%.

Click here to review data in the School-Justice Partnership dashboard.

“We’ve seen an uptick in the number of school-based offenses that are occurring across the state, and in the Mecklenburg and Cabarrus County area those numbers have increased tremendously,” Lassiter said.

Lassiter adds that some of the contributing factors to this behavior include students being isolated during the start of the pandemic and not having access to as many mental health resources during 2020.

The Division of Juvenile Justice works with the juveniles to complete mental health assessments and other assessments with their families. In addition, they offer mentoring, social skills courses, vocational courses, and education on non-violence.

“We move forward trying to find appropriate resources and programs for that juvenile to have a successful outcome,” Wall said.

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