GREAT FALLS — On Thursday, the Great Falls Police Department was made aware of a potential threat to CMR High School.
The GFPD said the threat involved action against the school on Friday, January 28th, and the threat referenced firearms and explosives.
At 4:19 p.m., the GFPD announced that Henry Douglas Lenning, 56 years old, had been arrested on a charge of felony intimidation in connection with the threat.
At this point, there is no word on whether police believe that Lenning had the means to carry out the threat, or any possible motive.
The news release states that GFPD detectives, including School Resource Officers, “are confident the threat to CMR High School has been identified and resolved.”
Tom Moore, superintendent of Great Falls Public Schools, said there will be no change in school schedules as a result of this incident.
No other information has been released at this point; we will update you when we get more details.
(1st REPORT, 2:14 p.m.) On Thursday, January 27th, the Great Falls Police Department was made aware of a potential threat to CMR High School.
The GFPD said in a news release that the threat was specific to CMR and said the action would take place the morning of Friday, January 28th. The threat referenced firearms and explosives.
On Thursday afternoon, CMR will release school at the normal time under ‘Release with Care’ conditions. ‘Release with Care’ requires school staff to be out and vigilant. There will also be an increased police presence (marked and unmarked units) in the area of CMR. The ‘Release with Care’ is purely precautionary, the GFPD noted.
Detectives are investigating the threat; the GFPD says: “We take all threats to our schools seriously and will always work to the fullest extent to both identify and neutralize the threat. We will also pursue criminal charges whenever appropriate.”
The GFPD plans to release an update at about 4 p.m. on Thursday to announce whether school will be in session on Friday.
Here is an overview of GFPS safety procedures:
- Evacuation: Defined as an internal emergency that requires students and staff to leave the building for their safety. Parents should follow emergency notifications.
- Lockdown: Defined as an internal and/or immediate threat. All staff and students are locked in rooms. No one IN or OUT!
- Shelter In Place: Defined as a safety precaution for an external threat that is not an immediate or internal threat.Class Hold: Defined as a safety precaution implemented during an incident where students need to be kept in the classroom.
- Release With Care: Defined as a possible threat in the schools’ neighborhoods during arrival and release time. Release with care procedures:
- To ensure safety, the building administrator may ask staff to escort students to/from buses or waiting cars.
- Staff may also be asked to accompany students home.
Click here to visit the Safety page on the GFPS website for more information.
We will update you as we get more information.
