13-year-old charged after threatening Clermont County School, sheriff’s office says

CLERMONT COUNTY, Ohio (WXIX) - An 8th grader at West Clermont Middle School in Batavia Township is accused of making threats against the school, students and school staff.

Clermont County Sheriff Robert Leahey says school administrators were told about the threat around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning.

Administrators looked into the situation and then reached out to the school’s resource officer.

School staff searched the 13-year-old’s property and confirmed the student would not have been able to follow through with the threat, Sheriff Leahy said.

A message that was sent to families from the school principals says no students or staff members were in immediate danger.

“Today as serves as an important reminder to us both as educators and parents that we should always encourage our students to speak up to an adult anytime they see or hear about something that is unsafe. We also urge you to take this opportunity to talk with your child about the seriousness and possible consequences of making threats that could induce panic without our schools and community,” the message read.

The student told detectives he was joking and had no intention of following through with the threat, according to the sheriff.

“The safety of staff and students within our schools is and will remain a priority of the Sheriff’s Office. We will continue to encourage students to report any issue that jeopardizes the safety of students on Campus,” Leahey wrote in a statement.

The Clermont County Prosecutor’s office charged the male student with a misdemeanor count of aggravated menacing and a misdemeanor count of making false alarms, the sheriff’s office said.

The 13-year-old was removed from the school and taken to the Juvenile Detention Center.

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