A 17-year-old boy was arrested around 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 15 after making a threat at Edina High School the previous day.
In response to the threat, Edina High School and Valley View Middle School moved to virtual learning on Sept. 15 “out of an abundance of caution,” said EHS administration.
The suspect, who police said is not a current or former Edina student, was apprehended in Minneapolis in a joint effort by the Edina Police Department, the Minneapolis Police Department, and the FBI.
The teenager is currently detained in the Hennepin County Juvenile detention center and may face felony charges for threats of violence and carrying a firearm on school property.
According to Edina Police Chief Todd Milburn, the suspect took a Snapchat video with a semi-automatic weapon and an extended magazine in his lap in the early afternoon on Sept. 14. The video was captioned, “Come outside b****” and showed the doors to EHS, Edina police said in a press release. It was taken in a vehicle in the EHS parking lot. The suspect then left the campus.
Police received notice of the threat around 8 p.m. on Sept. 14 and worked overnight to identify the teenager. In addition to moving EHS and VVMS students online, Edina police were present “in each of our schools,” especially EHS, VVMS, and Creek Valley Elementary, Superintendent Stacie Stanley said in a Friday afternoon press conference.
“Just to ensure the safety and wellbeing of kids returning to school on Monday, we’re going to have officers present in the schools here, we’re going to have marked squad cars just to make sure that everyone feels safe,” Milburn said. “We have this investigation, but we’re always concerned about future safety.”
Milburn stated that there has been an increase in youth using guns to resolve issues, which is “very concerning.”
Dr. Stanley spoke to the importance of supporting students and teaching them the “resilience that children need in order to know how to navigate difficult situations…[instead of] turning to violence.”
In an email sent to students, families, and staff on Sept. 16, Dr. Stanley discouraged the circulation of the Snapchat video and said that the district’s “commitment to psychological safety. extends beyond the physical school premises.”
The incident is still under investigation.
