To maintain a safe and secure environment for district students and staff, the Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the district's emergency and disaster preparedness plan and/or each school's comprehensive safety plan includes procedures for dealing with bomb threats. He/she also shall provide training regarding the procedures to site administrators, safety personnel, and staff members who customarily handle mail, telephone calls, or email.
(cf. 0450 - Comprehensive Safety Plan)
(cf. 3516 - Emergencies and Disaster Preparedness Plan)
(cf. 4040 - Employee Use of Technology)
(cf. 4131 - Staff Development)
(cf. 4231 - Staff Development)
(cf. 4331 - Staff Development)
Receiving Threats
Any staff member receiving a telephoned bomb threat shall try to keep the caller on the line so as to gather information about the location and timing of the bomb and the person(s) responsible. He/she should also try to determine the caller's gender and age and should take note of any distinctive features of voice or speech and any background noises such as music, traffic, machinery or other voices.
If the bomb threat is received through the mail system or in writing, the staff member who receives it should handle the letter, note, or package as minimally as possible. If the threat is received through electronic means, such as email or text messaging, the staff member should not delete the message.
Procedures
The following procedure shall be followed when a bomb threat is received:
1. Any employee who receives a bomb threat shall immediately call 911 and also report the threat to the principal or designee. If the threat is in writing, he/she shall place the message in an envelope and take note of where and by whom it was found.
2. Any student or employee seeing a suspicious package shall promptly notify the principal or designee.
3. The principal or designee shall immediately use fire drill signals and institute standard evacuation procedures as specified in the emergency plan.
(cf. 3516 - Emergencies and Disaster Preparedness Plan)
(cf. 3516.1 - Fire Drills and Fires)
4. The principal or designee shall turn off any two-way radio equipment which is located in a threatened building.
Law enforcement and/or fire department staff shall conduct the bomb search. School safety officers may assist in this search. No other school staff shall search for or handle any explosive or incendiary device.
(cf. 3515.3 - District Police/Security Department)
Except for school police officers, no staff or students shall reenter the threatened building(s) until the law enforcement and/or fire department staff advises the principal or designee that reentry is safe.
(cf. 3516.5 - Emergency Schedules)
To the extent possible, the Superintendent or designee shall maintain communications with staff, parents/guardians, the Governing Board, other governmental agencies, and the media during the period of the incident.
(cf. 1112 - Media Relations)
Following the incident, the Superintendent or designee shall provide crisis counseling for students and/or staff as needed.
(cf. 6164.2 - Guidance/Counseling Services)
Any student who makes a bomb threat shall be subject to disciplinary procedures.
(cf. 5144.1 - Suspension and Expulsion/Due Process)
Any employee or student found to have made a bomb threat shall be subject to disciplinary procedures and/or criminal prosecution.
(cf. 4118 - Suspension/Disciplinary Action)
(cf. 4218 - Dismissal/Suspension/Disciplinary Action)
(cf. 5131 - Conduct)
(cf. 5131.7 - Weapons and Dangerous Instruments)
(cf. 5144.1 - Suspension and Expulsion/Due Process)
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
44810 Willful interference with classroom conduct
48900 Grounds for suspension or expulsion
51202 Instruction in personal and public health and safety
PENAL CODE
17 Felony, misdemeanor, classification of offenses
148.1 False report of explosive or facsimile bomb
245 Assault with deadly weapon or force likely to produce great bodily injury; punishment
594 Vandalism; penalty
Management Resources:
CSBA PUBLICATIONS
911: A Manual for Schools and the Media During a Campus Crisis, 2001
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY PUBLICATIONS
Bomb Threat Checklist
WEB SITES
CSBA: http://www.csba.org
California Department of Education, Safe Schools: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss
U.S. Department of Homeland Security: http://www.dhs.gov
U.S. Department of Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives:
Regulation CENTINELA VALLEY UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
approved: April 12, 2016 Lawndale, California