Police in Florida have been criticised for revealing the identity of a fifth-grader and perp-walking him for allegedly threatening to conduct a mass shooting.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office said they were tipped off about a threatening text message sent by a fifth-grade student at Patriot Elementary School in Cape Coral on 28 May.
The incident came just days after 18-year-old Salvador Ramos went on a shooting spree, killing 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on 24 May. Although the shooter was gunned down, the local police were accused of not acting promptly and wasting up to an hour.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office in a statement on Saturday said: “The School Threat Enforcement Team was immediately notified and began analytical research. Due to the nature of the incident, the Youth Services Criminal Investigations Division assumed the case.”
Officers then interviewed the minor and arrested him for “making a written threat to conduct a mass shooting”.
“Right now is not the time to act like a little delinquent. It’s not funny. This child made a fake threat, and now he’s experiencing real consequences,” sheriff Carmine Marceno said.
The sheriff’s office released the child’s name, a mugshot and the arrest video, revealing the minor’s identity to the public. A video shared on Facebook showed the boy dressed in a hoodie and shorts, with his hands cuffed behind his back, being taken to a car by an officer.
According to Mr Marceno, the school’s threat assessment team received the text message that the boy sent to a classmate, where he said “get ready for water day” along with the image of an assault rifle taken from the internet.
“I did a campaign: fake threat, real consequence. While I understand the boy is 10 years old, his brain’s not fully developed, he’s a juvenile, I have to tell you: when a 10-year-old presses a trigger, the aftermath is the same regardless of the age,” the sheriff said.
“You don’t get to come into one of my schools in my county and present deadly force. Because we meet deadly force with deadly force, without one second, without hesitation,” Mr Marceno added.
“If you think you’re going to come and kill a child, a teacher or a faculty member, think again — we will kill you immediately.”
Congressman Byron Donalds on Monday praised the authorities. “Fake threats come with real consequences, and I applaud the dedicated professionals of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office for taking action and providing peace of mind to our community".
Many others, however, tore into the police for bringing the child a “lifetime of shame”.
“The sheriff has already determined that the threat was fake but made a choice to plaster his name and image on social and traditional media,” Facebook user Aura Bogado commented on the sheriff’s video.
“None of that makes anyone safer; it only guarantees a lifetime of shame for a literal child who obviously made a huge mistake but doesn’t deserve this.”
Another user, Valerie Faye, questioned the sheriff's office. “Why are you showing his face? He is a minor. Unless he is being charged as an adult, this isn’t ok. Of course he needs to face consequences, but he is hopefully young enough to get the help he needs.”
“Putting this video out is horribly inappropriate,” wrote Kim Rippere.
“You just publicly shamed and gave away the identity of a child because he had a popular misdemeanour,” added Justin Ruby.
