OKEMOS − Students were released from all Okemos School District buildings on Tuesday morning after someone called 911 to report a shooting at the high school.
Here's what we know:
The report was a hoax
No shots were fired and no violence happened at Okemos High School or any other school building, police and school officials said.
Meridian Township Police Chief Ken Plaga said the dispatch center received one call reporting a shooting shortly after 9 a.m. Police and fire personnel swept the grounds but found no indication that any violence occurred, he and other officials said.
Students sent home; all events canceled
Okemos school officials said staff followed the district's emergency lockdown procedures. Students were later evacuated from the high school, and students in all other district buildings also were sent home early. All after-school and evening events on Tuesday were canceled across the district.
Similar calls happened elsewhere in Michigan on Tuesday
Officials said similar false shooting reports were made to schools in the Jackson, Battle Creek, Ann Arbor, Portage and Detroit districts.
Jackson Public Schools was in lockdown Tuesday morning after school officials said they received a hoax call from an unknown Google number. on Facebook, the district said a lockdown had been lifted around 9:30 a.m. Students were released early.
'Swatting' is a crime in various forms
A prank call intended to draw police to a specific location is known as "swatting" and can result in various charges ranging from a 93-day misdemeanor to a 20-year felony, state Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a news release.
The most serious charge is communicating a threat of terrorism, a maximum 20-year felony. Potential charges also include making a false report resulting in death (maximum 15-year felony), making a false report resulting in serious injury (maximum 10-year felony), making a false report resulting in injury (maximum 5-year felony) or calling in a bomb threat (maximum four-year felony).
Possible misdemeanor charges include threatening violence against a school employee or student (up to a year in jail), malicious use of a telecommunications device (up to six months) and making a false crime report (up to 93 days).
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Okemos High School shooting threath hoax cancels classes
