Social Media Threat Made Toward Solon School, Deemed Not Credible

SOLON, OH — A purported threat toward a Solon school was discovered on social media on Tuesday morning. Police said they investigated the threat, identified the student who wrote it, and have deemed the threat not credible.

At 10 a.m. on Tuesday, police were made aware of a message on social media that contained threatening content. The message had been sent on Monday night and was then brought to the attention of police.

In less than two hours, detectives determined who had written the message, a Solon middle school student. The student was interviewed and confessed to writing the post, police said.

After talking with the student, and their parents, police determined the threat was not credible. The case will be reviewed for a possible filing of a complaint through the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court.

Solon School officials sent a message to Orchard Middle School parents on Tuesday, alerting families to the investigation. Officials also asked parents to be more aware of what their children are doing on social media.

"We urge you to discuss proper social media protocols and usage with your child. It has become clear that many Orchard students have several social media accounts on multiple platforms. The majority of social media sites and apps require users to be 13. If you allow your child to use social media, we urge you to play an active role in your child’s social media usage by monitoring texts, direct messages, snapchats and tweets, etc.," the district said in the email.

The district said parents should reiterate the following messages to children:

• Act immediately if something concerning is spotted on social media
• Screen shot messages or images that cause concern
• Share concerning messages with a trusted adult as soon as possible

"This is also a good opportunity to speak to your child about not using hurtful or hateful language in conversations, on social media, on the playground, at the lunch table or anywhere they are talking with and about other students. We are also seeing students participating in anonymous “truth or dare” activities. No positive results ever come from participating in these activities. Their response to a dare should be to not engage," the district said.

More information on social media and how parents should engage children on the matter, visit Common Sense Media.