CROSBY – Traditions of American Democratic Republic are far behind us now as vitriol spilled over into the high school children and one local teen received a suspension for suborning the assassination of the President-Elect last Sunday.
Mostly, a young male sporting and operating a hunting rifle appeared on Social Media encouraging shooting President-Elect Joe Biden.
Crosby ISD was not happy with this development; they issued a statement: “The safety and well-being of our students and staff is a top priority in Crosby Independent School District. On Sunday, November 8th, the District received information indicating that a student enrolled at Crosby High School made a threat on social media against President-elect Joe Biden over the weekend. The threat did not occur on school property or during school time and did not involve school district resources. Although the student made no threats against any Crosby ISD student or staff member, the student will remain home today as an added safety precaution. The threat has been investigated and cleared by federal authorities. At this time, the District does not have any further information other than what has been reported by the media. Although the incident did not occur on school campus or at any District facility, the District stands ready to cooperate with law enforcement in any way it can. Crosby ISD takes this situation very seriously and we are committed to ensuring that all District students, parents, staff, and families are safe and protected while at school and school events.”
Newly re-elected Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg’s office indicated that there was no law broken.
“Threatening government officials of the United States is a felony under federal law. Threatening other officials is a Class D or C felony, usually carrying maximum penalties of 5 to 10 years under U.S.C. 875, 18 U,S,C, 876 and other statues, that is investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” is Federal law. Chapter 41 of the U.S. Code indicates it must be a credible threaten to kill or just “cause bodily harm.”
In 2010 a young man in Arlington, Texas ranted against President Obama on a social media expressing anger at the Affordable Care Act and saying, “I am dedicating my life to the death of Obama and every employee of the federal government.”
The Secret Service tracked him to where he lived with his mother and after a hearing he was sentenced to 27 months in prison without parole.
The F.B.I. chimed in with, “We remind the public that the FBI, and all of our law enforcement partners, takes all threats seriously. Every threat is thoroughly investigated. Posting a threat online is a crime and comes with consequences, whether or not the person intended to carry out the threat. If you see a threat online, do not share it. Instead, please report it immediately to law enforcement.”
So there may be legal sanctuary under “knowingly and willfully” and “credible” but that practice could not be called safe.
The social media post has the student saying “Where you at Joe Biden? I’m coming for you.”
The school says the post did not happen in school on Sunday. They also indicated that the post was “cleared” by Federal authorities.