Police step up patrols at Kennewick middle school after 3rd shooting threat

Kennewick police are stepping up their presence after a threat was found scrawled on the restroom wall at Chinook Middle School.

School officials reported they are taking the precaution after someone wrote, “I’m going to shoot up the school Friday — 8th grader girl” inside the seventh-grade girls restroom Thursday.

Police and the school’s security team are reviewing the video from the school to figure out who may have left the message.

This is the third threat made at the school in less than two weeks. Last week, there were two threats in the span of two days.

With a parent reporting an anonymous Snapchat user shared the question, “What if I brought a gun to Chinook?”

The next day, there were threats of a shooting during the honor roll assemblies.

“We want students to feel safe at school and eliminate disruptions to the learning environment, but we need your help,” school officials wrote on Facebook.

They encouraged parents to talk to their children about the seriousness of making threats even if they are joking.

Students found making threats could face criminal charges and be expelled from the school.