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Norfolk middle school student charged with threatening to harm classmates

Posted at 3:31 PM, Sep 29, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-29 22:24:08-04

NORFOLK, Va. - A 12-year-old student from Norview Middle School has been charged with threatening to harm his classmates.

Norfolk detectives say around 9:20 a.m. Tuesday morning they were called to the school for a "suspicious situation."

Police arrived and school officials said a student had written threatening statements of bodily harm to his classmates.

"It was shocking," says Dewayne Wray.

Wray, known as "Coach Country" to the Norview Cardinals Football Team, has several players that go to Norview Middle.

He says his players told him there was a journal containing a hit list with several students names.

"What was going on in his head, what happened?" says Wray. "Did someone bully or pressure him to do this?

The student was charged with threats of bodily injury to a person or persons on school property.

The student was transported to Juvenile Detention Center.

No one was injured in the incident.

Several parents told News 3 they were never notified about the situation and felt that they should have been.

"It's crazy that I had no idea that this was going on," says Dajhana May, a parent to a sixth-grader. "I would think they would let parents know, send something home."

A spokeswoman for Norfolk Public Schools sent News 3 a statement:

" The safety and security of our students and staff is our top priority. Norview Middle School staff followed a threat assessment protocol and took the necessary steps to make sure all students and staff were safe and followed up appropriately with certain parents and students regarding the incident. The incident is currently under investigation by the Norfolk Police Department and Norfolk Public Schools."