Information from official letter sent to TCHS community from Principal Michelle Somerhalder:
“Today our school implemented a brief lockdown when school officials were alerted about a photograph that was being distributed showing what appeared to be a handgun in a backpack.
Our School Resource Officer was immediately contacted and responded, and as a precaution, the lockdown was implemented at 10:40 a.m. The student was identified and removed from class by authorities, and the lockdown was lifted within approximately 10 minutes.
The student did not have a weapon and appropriate action was taken by TCHS Administration. All measures were implemented to ensure that students and staff were not in danger. While today’s lockdown was unrelated to incidents earlier this week, we take all threats very seriously.
Please speak with your student about the seriousness of these types of threats. Not only can they result in an assignment to either our Discipline Alternative Educational Placement (DAEP) or to the Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Alternative Educational Program (JJAEP), but the student could also face felony charges.
Timber Creek High School will keep parents informed, but please know that our first priority is the safety of our students and staff. Inaccurate information is often spread while the investigation is taking place, and we are committed to communicating the most accurate information as quickly as possible.
To clarify a point of misinformation this morning, there was an unrelated staff medical emergency which required an ambulance to respond to the campus just prior to the lockdown. Again, the ambulance was unrelated to the lockdown.
If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact our office. Thank you for your continued support of our school.”
As noted above, two previous letters were sent out by Principal Michelle Somerhalder detailing other security-related events that occurred in the community.
On Sept. 24, 2018, Somerhalder shared this letter:
“Dear Timber Creek High School Parents and Families,
In an effort to keep you informed, I wanted to make you aware of an incident that occurred in a classroom today, where a student was heard making statements of a threatening nature.
Witnesses did the right thing and made TCHS staff aware of the comments, and the student was immediately removed from the classroom and questioned by campus administrators, as were the witnesses. Fortunately, this threat was deemed not credible.
Please be assured that your child’s safety is our top priority and we take all threats very seriously. Please talk with your student about the seriousness of making any kind of statement – whether in person or on social media – that could be construed as threatening or violent in nature.
I appreciate your support as we remain ever vigilant in our efforts to ensure we maintain a safe learning environment.”
Letter to Falcon Community – 9.24.18.doc
And on Sept. 25, 2018, she shared another letter:
“Dear Timber Creek High School Parents and Families,
In an effort to keep you informed, I wanted to let you know that our campus was alerted today about a video that was taken at an unidentified location off campus, which included a few of our students surrounding an individual holding what appeared to be a handgun. While there
were no injuries reported as a result of the alleged weapon, the Fort Worth Police and Keller ISD Security Departments were immediately contacted.
The Timber Creek Administration has taken appropriate action regarding the students in the video and is cooperating with the Fort
Worth Police Department’s investigation of this incident. Today’s incident has no connection to the information that I shared yesterday.
At this time, there is no known threat to our school, however, there will be additional security at Timber Creek High School to support our efforts in providing a safe learning environment.
In Keller ISD, student safety is our top priority. I appreciate your support of Timber Creek High School. If you have questions regarding this or any other matter, please do not hesitate to call our office at 817-744-2300.”
Letter to Falcon Community – 9.25.18
Additional security members were on hand during Sept. 26 and present during the lock down.