Kenosha police chief discusses school shooting threat

KENOSHA – Questions and concerns are swirling in Kenosha after a serious shooting threat at schools rocked the community last week.

A 13-year-old was arrested after what Kenosha police described as a school shooting threat at Roosevelt Elementary School.

TMJ4’s Megan Lee asked Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton if he or his department knew anything about the 13-year-old, who was taken into custody Thursday.

Previous coverage: https://www.tmj4.com/news/kenosha-county/kenosha-police-searching-for-suspicious-person-spotted-at-roosevelt-elementary-school

‘That day was the first time his name ended up in one of our databases. It was the first time anyone had heard that name in our department,” Chief Patton said.

Chief Patton said the teen was not on their threat assessment list.

“We responded to Mahone several times on certain cases, and we went through all those files, but there was never anything wrong with him,” Chief Patton explained.

Watch: Kenosha police chief discusses school shooting threat

Kenosha police chief discusses school shooting threat

However, the Mahone Middle School student became the center of a potential tragedy and disturbing investigation.

“This kid was obsessed with it, absolutely obsessed,” Chief Patton said.

New surveillance video from the school district shows the teen trying to open the exterior doors and wiping off his fingerprints.

“That behavior is the driving force behind a lot of our actions because it didn’t make sense to us that if he just had an airsoft gun that this was the behavior he would exhibit,” Chief Patton said.

During the investigation, the police uncovered disturbing details. The teen spent hours researching school shootings, making videos of himself practicing room-clearing techniques and even looking up maps of the school.

“This wasn’t just someone being upset. This was truly obsessive research, almost consumed with the thought that we would be able to cause this kind of mass casualty,” said Chief Patton.

Parents tell us off camera that they filed complaints with the Kenosha Unified School District about the teen and his behavior prior to the incident.

A KUSD spokesperson sent this statement:

The recent incident at Roosevelt Elementary School has affected all schools in Kenosha Unified, especially the Roosevelt and Mahone school communities. The district recognizes the concerns of families and staff and wants to reassure the community that the safety of students and staff has always been and will remain a top priority.

Kenosha Unified Superintendent Dr. Jeff Weiss encourages students who need support in dealing with this incident to contact their school counselor. The district is committed to providing resources and ensuring that all students have access to someone they can talk to if they need support.

The district is also conducting a comprehensive review of its safety procedures and protocols to identify potential areas for improvement. This evaluation is conducted internally and in collaboration with local law enforcement agencies. Any changes that can be implemented quickly will be implemented immediately, while those requiring significant resources will be submitted to the Board of Education for further consideration.

Before the incident, administrators received concerns about images of airsoft guns. These images do not contain any threats or other relevant content, and these concerns have been thoroughly investigated. If threats had been made, the administration would have notified law enforcement in accordance with the district’s standard threat assessment process. It is important to note that owning airsoft guns is not illegal. Previous incidents did not involve violating any district rules or laws, such as having similar weapons on district property or threatening bodily harm.

The district is urging families to emphasize the importance of “see something, say something” with their children. Community vigilance is essential to maintaining safe schools, and students and families are encouraged to report any concerns through the Speak Up, Speak Out (speakup.widoj.gov)>
platform.

“We are grateful for the continued support and trust of our families as we navigate this situation together,” said Kenosha Unified Superintendent Dr. Jeff Weiss. “Know that we remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of every student in our schools.”

‘They were air soft weapons. Those are things that kids have all the time, so there would be no reason to involve law enforcement at that point,” Chief Patton said.

He said this incident remains under investigation.

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