JAY, Maine — A 13-year-old student was charged with terrorizing on Friday after police said a threat was found in a Spruce Mountain Middle School bathroom.
The student, a girl, was released to a guardian and is under house arrest with conditions that include no possession of any weapons, Jay Police Chief Richard Caton said in a release Friday. Caton told NEWS CENTER Maine the child may leave her house if she's accompanied by a guardian.
Spruce Mountain Middle School and Spruce Mountain High School went into lockdown around 8:30 a.m. Friday after a note with a threat was found in a middle school bathroom, Caton said.
Jay police responded, and during the investigation, the student was identified and interviewed. She was taken into custody and charged with terrorizing, a class C felony, officials said.
Caton said the student's case would be handled through the juvenile court system.
The schools are part of RSU 73, which serves the towns of Jay, Livermore, and Livermore Falls.
Friday's threat was the second threat to the school district this week. On Thursday, the middle school was evacuated due to a note written on a bathroom stall that referenced a bomb threat.
The threat found Thursday remains under investigation, but Caton said police do not believe there is a connection between the threat found Thursday and the threat found Friday
There have also been other school threats across Maine in recent weeks.
Students at Portland's King Middle School shifted to remote learning last week due to two separate threats found by staff in the school.
South Portland High School students were sent home early last week because of a report of a threat, and school officials in Poland, along with deputies, are investigating what Whittier Middle School is calling a "kill list" found on a student's computer.
In April, officials confirmed threats against schools in Augusta, Madison, Limestone, Fort Fairfield, Madawaska, and Van Buren.
Violence against schools is in the national spotlight after an 18-year-old gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school on Tuesday, May 24.