Investigation ongoing after 15-year-old CC student arrested by police

By Kate Hayden, khayden@charlescitypress.com

An investigation is ongoing after police detained a 15-year-old male for social media posts regarding the Charles City Middle School, police and district officials confirmed Wednesday afternoon.

The Charles City district student has been turned over to the juvenile court services, Police Chief Hugh Anderson said. Charges are pending. Anderson said he could not comment on what the charges are.

There is no active threat to the district, Anderson said.

Police were called to the middle school by 10 a.m. Wednesday morning, Anderson said.

Superintendent Dr. Dan Cox said a mother reported to middle school administration that she had seen an inappropriate message on her child’s cellphone, and the middle school contacted the Charles City Police Department.

Cox said the message involved a middle school student, but he could not verify whether the detained student was enrolled in the middle school or high school. Police were brought to the middle school, he said.

“I can say that we’ve moved beyond the point where, ‘that’s just kids being kids,'” Cox said.

Cox said he has not seen what the comments made are, but added “When students make comments that are threatening … we’re going to take it seriously and act accordingly.”

While police were present at the middle school through Wednesday, there was no disruption to regular classes, Cox said. Students were brought in for questioning in the middle school offices. Police had left middle school property by 3 p.m., Anderson said.

The district sent out a notice to middle school parents early Wednesday afternoon informing families an investigation is underway by police.

“We would always encourage parents like the one this morning to be looking at what your kids are posting and sharing, and if you see something that looks troubling to you, take action like the parent did this morning,” Cox said.

“One thing we do appreciate is the fast acting of the school officials for getting this investigated quickly,” Anderson said. “We also appreciate the cooperation of many parents that were involved.”