3 Disciplined in Alleged Threat to Kill Student, Family

DEARBORN, MI - Three students who allegedly threatened to kill a Stout Middle School student and her family will be allowed to return to school after completion of an investigation, a school spokesman said.

David Mustonen, director of communications for Dearborn schools, declined to discuss the specific content of the note the student found in her locker Monday, but said it contained a “very threatening message.”

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“Appropriate disciplinary actions have been taken for all three students,” Mustonen told Patch. “The students will be able to return to school after completion of the investigation and an opportunity to meet with the parents involved.”

Police Sgt. Bruce Caldwell, who supervises Dearborn’s school resource officers, told Patch police are investigating, but said it’s too early in the investigation to classify the threat as credible or a prank.

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In either case, “any type of threatening behavior and messaging is looked at more aggressively” in a an environment of heightened awareness of school violence and global and domestic terror, Caldwell said.

“Times change and all those cliches,” Mustonen added. “We have to take all with a different approach than 20 or 30 years ago.”

Noting the uptick in threats across the country, Mustonen said it’s “naive” to think a district of 20,000 students “wouldn’t get someone who would write something like this,” but school officials think it’s an isolated case.

In general, he said, “more often than not, they’re not credible threats,” he said. “It’s kids doing dumb, dumb things and not realizing how serious the consequences are of saying and doing stupid things.”

Stout Middle School is located at 18500 Oakwood.