Lake Travis - Westlake Edition | November 2024

BY BRITTANY ANDERSON & CHLOE YOUNG

Something to know

Looking forward

During the press conference, Travis County District Attorney José Garza said there were at least 30 cases pending in his office relating to school threats. While there were a few adult cases, the majority were juveniles. Garza said the threshold for arresting a student is a legal standard that applies to both adults and juveniles. If there is probable cause to believe they committed a crime, he said, they will be arrested. The juvenile justice system was designed to “rehabilitate young people,” he said, working to not only balance the safety of the community but the long-term impacts of a juvenile’s involvement in the system. “The process moves more quickly than the adult process does, and our judges in the juvenile system have far more discretion than judges do in our adult system,” Garza said. Officials have also asked parents to talk to their children about not making threats as a joke over text or social media.

Districts such as HCISD and Eanes ISD have implemented campaigns— “Threat Regret” and “It’s No Joke,” respectively—to inform students about the affects of making threats against campuses. Ahead of the 89th legislative session, Norton said he would like state lawmakers to increase funding for safety and security measures, and make it a more serious criminal offense to make threats toward schools. To comply with Senate Bill 838, LTISD has proposed spending nearly $974,000 to install panic buttons on staff members’ badges. EISD also has plans to discuss how to meet SB 838 requirements during its Nov. 15 meeting, after press time.

When a juvenile makes a threat

A hearing is held for a judge to decide that there’s probable cause a crime was committed.

The risk to the community is assessed.

The judge decides if the juvenile should or should not remain detained.

If detained, the juvenile is entitled to hearings every 10 days.

SOURCE: JOSÉ GARZA, TRAVIS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

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