Threat Assessment in Schools:
Lessons Learned from
School Shootings
Marleen Wong, Ph.D.. Director
Assistant Dean and Clinical Professor
Director of Field Education
School of Social Work
University of Southern
Marleenw@usc.edu
Safe School Initiative 2000
US Dept of Education and Secret
Service
 Joint study on targeted school violence
 Develop useful information from prior school
attacks to prevent future attacks
 Reviewed 37 incidents 1974-2000
 Interviewed 10 attackers in prison
 Thinking, planning and pre-attack behaviors
 Patterned after the Exceptional Case Study
Project of the Secret Service – Lethal attacks
on public officials since 1949 (1999)
Safe School Initiative
US Dept of Education and Secret
Service
 Targeted Violence Rarely Impulsive
 Planned Attack in Advance
 Observable Behaviors Caused Concern
or Indicated Need for Help
 Attackers Had Difficulty Coping with
Significant Loses or Personal Failure
Violence is Progressive: There are
behavioral warning signs
 Many Felt Bullied, Persecuted or Injured
by Others Prior to Attack
 Many Considered or Attempted Suicide
 Other Students Knew, Some were
Involved in Some Way
 Most Had Access To or Had Used
Weapons Prior to Attack.
School Violence Myths
 Myth: It won’t happen here
 Reality: It can happen anywhere
 Reality: Denial leads to the ignoring of
important warning signs.
 Reality: Realistic awareness, not
paranoia, can increase school safety.
School Violence Myths
 Myth: Sometimes people just snap!
 Reality: The snap theory is a fairy tale
 Reality: Violent behaviors are
progressive
 Reality: There are observable signs
along the way
School Violence Myths
 Myth: No crime has been committed.
There is nothing we can do about it
 Reality: School shootings can be
prevented
 Intervention stops the forward motion of
violent behavior
 Reality: We need new ways of working
together
Threat Assessment
Concepts and Variables
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Justification
Dehumanization
Human Target Selection
Site Selection
 Emotionally Determined Sites
 Sites of Opportunity
Developmental Realities
 Some students may already possess
significant violence potential before they even
enter a school system
 Contributing Factors?
Victim of Abuse
Chronic Violence in the Home or Community
Family Dynamics…“I will punch you in the
head”
THREE ELEMENTS TO BEGIN
 Authority to Conduct an Assessment - A
formal policy identifying team members,
roles, threshold of concern for initiating a
threat assessment
 Capacity to Conduct Inquiries – An
Investigative, inquisitive mindset, viewing
information with healthy skepticism – what
are the real FACTS
 Multi-Systems Team Relationships
Boundary Spanners – Individuals who build
and maintain relationships across disciplines
and agencies
WHAT IF…?
A DVD Produced by
 US Department of Education
 US Department of Justice
 Homeland Security
 National Center for School Safety
Desired Characteristics of TAT Members
 A Questioning, Analytical and Skeptical
Mindset
 An ability to relate well to parents,
colleagues, other professionals and students
 Solid knowledge of child development, the
school environment, safe schools practices
 A school and community reputation for
fairness and trustworthiness
 Ability to collect and evaluate information
 Discretion
 Respect for the authority given to YOU:
Take Actions that Help not Harm
THREAT ASSESSMENT
 Threat or risk assessment is the
process of
 Assessing risks to a particular
target, group of individuals, or
individual
 Designing and implementing
intervention and management
strategies to reduce that risk or
threat.
THREAT ASSESSMENT
 “Risk investigation is only as
good as the data.
 Use of collateral/functional data
sources is essential.”
Does The District Have a Formal Policy
Regarding Oral or Written Threats by
Students or Staff?
 LAUSD BULLETIN 1119.1
“All threats made against individuals or
groups…must be taken seriously and
investigated to determine whether they pose a
real danger to students or staff. Threats which
initially appear or ultimately prove to be pranks
or hoaxes are also taken seriously due to the
severe disruption that false threats often
impose on the daily operation of a school…”
WHO SHOULD BE ON THE THREAT
ASSESSMENT TEAM
Core Members at the School Site
 Site Administrator – Principal/Educator
 School Police Officer
 School Mental Health Professional
(Counselor, School Psychologist, Social
Worker, Nurse or Attendance Worker)
Additional Members
 District Administrator and/or Legal Counsel
ELEVEN KEY QUESTIONS
 1. What are the student’s motives and
goals?
 2. Have there been any communications
suggesting ideas or intent to attack?
11 Key Questions
 3. Has the subject shown inappropriate
interest in any of the following?
 School Attacks or Attackers
 Weapons, including recent acquisitions
 Incidents of mass violence such as
terrorism, workplace violence, mass
murderers
More Key Questions
 4. Has the student engaged in attack
related behaviors?
 5. Does the student have the capacity to
carry out an act of targeted violence?
More Key Questions
 6. Is the student experiencing
hopelessness, desperation and/or
despair?
 7. Does the student have a trusting
relationship with at least one responsible
adult?
 8. Does the student see violence as an
acceptable or desirable…or the only way
to solve problems?
Key Questions 8-11
 9. Is the student’s conversation and
“story” consistent with his or her
actions/reality?
 10. Are other people concerned about
the student’s potential for violence?
 11. What circumstances might affect the
likelihood of an attack?
Introduce Yourselves
 Create a group of 3
 Reach over to someone you don’t know –
Next to you; Behind you, or in front of you
 Shake hands and introduce yourselves
 Tell them your name
 How many years you’ve worked in
schools
 Where you were born
Managing Threats: Lessons Learned
from School Shootings
 The perspectives of education, law
enforcement and mental health are essential
 No one person on the Threat Assessment
Team should make a unilateral decision
 The person making the threat is in a state of
“fluidity”
 Interrupting the forward movement of
threatening behavior can be very effective
RESOURCES
LAUSD Crisis Counseling and
Intervention Services WEBSITE:
On LAUSD.NET
1) Go to “Offices”
2) Click on “Crisis Counseling and
Intervention Services”