ST. LOUIS— As school administrators and law enforcement authorities around the region continue to grapple with threats of school violence posted online, students are getting put into remote learning or modified lockdowns as threats get investigated

Lift For Life Academy shifted to e-learning on Wednesday after a school shooting was threatened in a social media post discovered Tuesday night.

Police detectives worked through the night and thought they had a lead on a suspect, only to find out it was someone who took a screenshot of the post and re-shared it. Doing so amplifies the message, but it also makes it harder for police to find the original source.

What You Need To Know

  • Lift For Life Academy was in remote learning Wednesday after a social media post threatening a school shooting was discovered Tuesday night

  • Saint Louis Public Schools told families that increased security precautions would be taken district-wide, and that recess would be held indoors for the remainder of the week

  • Authorities are encouraging anyone who knows of a school shooting threat to contact police or the Missouri Highway Patrol's Courage2Report tipline, instead of sharing it on social media. Sharing it on social media amplifies the threat and also makes it harder for police to determine who is responsible for the threat

  • Data obtained by Spectrum News shows there have been at least 481 tips since July 1

“Parents are screen-shotting and posting the message online but they're not calling the police. That is such a hindrance. We understand that parents are rightfully concerned about threats that are being posed online but in some way they can be delaying law enforcement from tracking down the actual poster,” said Mitch McCoy, a spokesman for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. 

“If you’re going to be the one to take a screenshot and then share, call the police too. Call 9-1-1. That is an emergency. But if you’re just going to screenshot it and post it to Facebook and get a lot of shares, you’re not helping us. You’re putting our detectives hours and hours and hours and hours behind of trying to articulate where that threat originated from,” he said.

St. Louis police are working with security teams at Lift For Life and Saint Louis Public Schools buildings to add to an existing security presence.

Parent-Teacher Organization official shared a letter from acting superintendent Dr. Millicent Borishade to SLPS district families saying the district would have heightened security measures in place district-wide. One measure includes holding elementary school recess inside for the remainder of the week.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday praised the response from law enforcement and the Ritenour School District Tuesday, when a threat posted to social media was reported to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Courage2Report Hotline. Within a half hour, a suspect with a loaded handgun was in custody.

The hotline, which is available 24/7 via phone, web, mobile app or text, is encouraged for reporting school shooting threats, assaults, sexual offenses, bullying and planned suicides. Information taken by the hotline gets shared with school and law enforcement officials.

According to the Highway Patrol, the hotline has taken 102 tips for school shooting threats and 14 tips on planned school attacks between July 1 and Tuesday. The number reflects the amount of tips, and doesn’t necessarily denote separate incidents. 

Ritenour Superintendent Chris Kilbride credited his school community’s embrace of the tipline as administrators work to minimize the distraction for students and staff and return their focus to learning.

“Our community has shifted because our community is tired," said Kilbride.