Editor’s note: This article, originally published at 4:04 p.m. on June 11, 2024, was updated at 12:08 p.m. on June 12, 2024, to add information from a letter sent to families from Walt Whitman Principal Robert Dodd and to correct that MCPS spokesperson Chris Cram respond to inquiries in person.
A 15-year-old Montgomery County Public Schools student is facing charges in connection with Friday’s reported bomb threat at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, according to county police.
Police said Tuesday in a statement the student has been charged with threats of mass violence and disrupting school operations. Police did not identify the student, who is a juvenile, nor did the statement say which school the student attended or when or where the student was arrested.
When asked Tuesday for comment on the student’s status with MCPS, district spokesperson Chris Cram referred questions to county police. “It’s a criminal matter now,” he told MoCo360 Tuesday.
In the letter sent to the Whitman community about the student’s arrest, Whitman High Principal Robert Dodd said he would not be able to confirm additional information because the situation was a “police matter.”
“It is important to understand that student privacy regulations are not a matter of arbitrary discretion but are instead firmly established by federal law,” he wrote, noting the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which prohibits the disclosure of specific information related to disciplinary actions or educational records.
Dodd focused on the bomb threat’s impact on the school community, writing that “threatening statements create fear and anxiety” and are “extremely disruptive to school operations.”
He also emphasized the importance of parents and caregivers talking with their children about using social media and their phones appropriately.
“It is crucial that students understand the potential dangers and consequences associated with digital harassment, bullying, and threatening statements and behavior,” he said.
According to police, officers responded at about 10:45 a.m. Friday to the high school at 7100 Whittier Boulevard following the reported threat. The school was evacuated while officers determined whether the threat was valid.
Police announced on social media at 12:04 p.m. that the threat was determined “not valid” and that the school no longer was in lockdown. Students and staff returned to the building at that time.
The reported threat comes weeks after the school was placed on lockdown on May 17 after a reported threat. At that time, students and staff also evacuated the school. Officers determined that the threat sent to the school was unfounded, according to county police.
It is unclear if the 15-year-old charged in connection with Friday’s reported threat is also a suspect in the earlier one. Police did not immediately respond Tuesday to Moco360’s request for comment.
The Montgomery County Department of Police Behavioral Assessment and Administrative Unit led the investigation into Friday’s reported threat and identified the 15-year-old MCPS student as the suspect, according to the statement.
The statement said the case will be processed through the Department of Juvenile Services. It did not say if the student is being held.
