An 11-year-old girl is under arrest after the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office said she posted on social media, threatening to carry out a school shooting.
The sheriff’s office said on its Facebook page at approximately 1:30 p.m. Wednesday that, earlier in the day, the girl, who is in sixth grade at Southern Oaks Middle School, located at 5500 Northeast St. James Drive in Port St. Lucie, was arrested for posting a threat on Instagram “insinuating a shooting at the school.”
WPTV learned the school did not go on lockdown.
School and law enforcement response
School staff members and deputies immediately investigated the incident, identified the 11-year-old girl, searched her, and determined the threat was not credible.
“Her actions, however, caused panic, and threats like this are against the law,” the sheriff’s office wrote on Facebook.
In a statement, Sheriff Keith Pearson said the girl was arrested and faces “severe disciplinary consequences, up to and including expulsion.”
“This outcome highlights the strong working relationships among the school district, staff, students, and our deputies, who are on every school campus to ensure our students stay safe,” the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. “We take every threat, whether made in person or online, seriously. The message is simple: If you see something, say something.”