Judge resorts to polygraph tests in Warren County school threat cases

Four Warren County boys accused of making threats against their schools are to undergo polygraph tests today, according to court officials.

The tests were ordered by Judge Joe Kirby as he mulled whether to free the boys, ages ranging from 13 to 17, in recognition of claims by them and their lawyers that they were joking when they made the threats in cases stretching from late January to the days following the deadly school shootings in Parkland, Florida.

MORE: Teen accused of making threats toward Dayton school

“Who wants to die last in my school shooting/bombing? Swipe up and state your hobby and why you should die last, and if you don’t than you will die long and painfully,” a 13-year-old boy who attended St. Margaret of York School in Deerfield Twp. is alleged to have posted in his Snapchat story on Jan. 30.

RELATED: Despite pleas, Lebanon boy held for polygraph test

A 17-year-old Little Miami Schools boy attending the Warren County Career Center detained since Feb. 20 is alleged to have said he was “going to bring in a gun and shoot up the school on April 27th. The conversation was during English class approximately 1-2 weeks ago. A concerned parent of another student heard this from his daughter last night and contacted the school principal,” a Warren County Sheriff’s deputy said in court filings.

MORE: Springfield boy, 11, alleged to have threatened teacher, school

These cases are in addition to cases pending against two other boys, a 17-year-old from Lebanon, and 14-year-old Little Miami high schools made in the days following the shootings that claimed the lives of 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14.

RELATED: 14-year-old held for polygraph, after admitting to school threat

Kirby is dealing with seven school or teacher threat cases.

”We’re dealing with an issue that is taking on a life of its own,” Kirby said, noting the rising incidence of school threats, most of which result in no violence. “I’m going to take each one of them seriously.”

About the Author