Bomb threat at Laurel school raises tensions between police department and school district | Latest news

LAUREL, DE – After a fake bomb threat at Laurel Middle and High School on Thursday, the Laurel Police Department raised concerns about the school district superintendent’s communications.

The Laurel Police Department released a press release following the incident detailing the investigation and communications with the public.

According to the department, Laurel School District Superintendent Shawn Larrimore made a Facebook post early in the incident without consulting law enforcement. Larrimore kept the post public after being asked to remove it.

The post informed parents that there had been a bomb threat and that all students and staff were being evacuated to the soccer field. It also included a dismissal order and an announcement to cancel all extracurricular activities, which were expected to last three hours, to eliminate the bomb threat.

Laurel police say the post “endangered the integrity of the police department and may have placed students and staff at additional risk of harm if the threat is confirmed.”

However, Laurel Middle School parent Lauren Neidig says she appreciates Larrimore’s urgency to spread the word.

“Parents first, these are our children,” says Neidig. “We should first be clear about where I should go to get my child if there is chaos.”

The Laurel Police Department says the post caused unnecessary alarm among parents, with no mention of emergency services coming to campus. It also added that the estimate of three hours to clear the bomb threat was misleading.

Some parents agree that the message was missing important information about the incident.

“There could have been at least an explanation for the bomb threat,” says Doug Campbell. “Hey, maybe we got a call, something like that, and we didn’t think it was legitimate or whatever. At least that.”

Laurel librarian Christian Jackson believes there is a way to avoid confusion in the future.

“Someone should be the point person to communicate effectively between the school and the police, especially since they are so close to each other,” Jackson said. “There should not have been a gap in information. Everything should have been clear and concise.”

School continued as usual on Friday. WBOC contacted both the Laurel School District and the Laurel Police Department and received no response from either.

However, the police department’s statement said there needs to be more communication and planning between the school and police in the future to avoid confusion during incidents.