Opinion
Colorado – -(AmmoLand.com)- Justine Myers is your pretty average northern Colorado mom. She loves her kids, supports the troops, praises our first responders, and owns firearms. On Wednesday, Justine picked up her 16 year old son Nate early from school for some mother-son bonding time – she took him shooting.
After a fun afternoon, they return home, get settled in – and the police show up. Nate had posted on his Snapchat that he was going shooting with his mom along with this video below (for those who need a little help translating the slang kids use these days “Finna be lit” basically means “Going to be a good time”.)…
And here’s a video of him shooting with his mother, who can be heard instructing him:
A report had come in to the police department about the video and they were told Nate was a threat. After showing the videos to the police officers and explaining that they’d simply gone on a mother-son outing to train with their legally owned firearms, the police stated that they had done nothing illegal and were well within their rights. They also determined Nate was not a threat to himself or anyone else, and went on their way.
But it wasn’t over.
This morning Justine woke up to a voicemail from Thompson Valley School District where Nate is a junior at Loveland High School in Loveland, CO. The voicemail informed Justine that a report had come in claiming Nate was a threat to the school and he was not allowed to return until further notice. The report presumably came through Safe 2 Tell. There are reports that a school wide email was also sent to parents about the “threat”. Justine immediately contacted the school assuming she could easily clear things up, especially since the police had already assessed the situation and realized no one had done anything wrong or made any threats. She was wrong. The school not only refused to provide her with more information about the “threat”, but they refused to provide Nate with schoolwork so he doesn’t get behind. A “threat assessment hearing” has been scheduled for Thursday morning at 10am at the school admin building where Justine will be allowed to defend her son against SEVEN school officials who will be in attendance to, as she was told, “make their case”.
Make their case of what? That Nate’s outing with his mother to train with her firearms somehow makes him a danger to the school?
I spoke with Justine, as well as two different attorneys who specialize in Second Amendment issues. The bottom line is the school is legally within their rights at this time. According to the attorneys, the school has a protocol that must be followed when a report of a threat comes in through Safe 2 Tell or other means, even if the report is completely false – and there is nothing parents or students can legally do about it, even with a lawyer. If the student is charged or further action is taken, that changes. This is why students have dubbed Safe 2 Tell as “Safe 2 Swat”, referencing the act of “swatting“, a criminal harassment tactic of deceiving an emergency service into sending a police and emergency service response team to another person’s address. The person who will face no repercussions? The false accuser. As for Nate, he has aspirations to join the military and is now worried this incident will go on his permanent school record with far-reaching implications.
If this happens to you or your child, what should you do? These are tips from an attorney (NOT legal advice).
1.) Don’t talk to the police.
2.) Be prepared for a visit from CPS.
3.) Consider moving your firearms to safe place until it is cleared up. [read; secret]
4.) Immediately obtain a psychiatric evaluation for the student from a qualified individual that can be provided to the above agencies as well as the school.
5.) Contact us for attorney referrals and moral support if needed.
Editor’s Note: For interested readers Loveland, CO School Offical Contact Information is found here.
About Rally for our Rights
Rally for our Rights is a non-partisan gun rights advocacy organization that was founded in early 2018. It has quickly become Colorado’s most active Second Amendment group with a focus on frontline activism and community outreach.