SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News)-Swatting has become a real issue in the United States. New York has been struck by people or bots calling in that there is an active shooter, when in actuality, no threat of violence is happening.
In one day in early April, over 50 school districts experienced swatting threats. One of these schools was Westhill High School in Syracuse. Police received a call that seven students had been shot in a bathroom. When they arrived at the scene, nothing had happened.
“Both situations cause trauma,” said Roman Saladino, student at Syracuse University, “Whether the shooting threat is real or not.”
Schools have already had to prepare students for the possibility of a shooting, and now they are having to navigate how to handle swatting. Syracuse University has had two recent instances of swatting. Department of Public Safety officers have done what they feel is best to handle the empty threats in the way they feel will best benefit students.
“We don’t want to create a panic,” said DPS Associate Vice President Chief of Campus Safety and Emergency Management Services Craig Stone. “We want everyone to feel safe. Hearing these swatting calls, it makes people feel uneasy and it makes people feel unsafe.”
DPS, along with police and departments across the country, have plans in place in case a shooting were to happen. At SU, Orange ALERT would go off all around campus. Students would receive a text and call. DPS officers urge students to make sure they get texts when tests are done each month.
Students can also download the Orange Safe app. It was designed to be a place where all resources are readily available. The app also sends alerts in case of an emergency. DPS wants students to know that they are surveilling the campus 24/7 to keep everyone safe.
As for consequences for swatting, they are most likely coming. Lawmakers across New York state have been pushing to make it a felony to cause false panic for a mass shooting. State Governor Kathy Hochul is expected to sign the bill into law, as it was recently passed by legislators. In most states, falsely reporting an incident is a misdemeanor.
OLIVIA MANISCALCO: SWATTING HAS RUN RAMPANT AROUND NEW YORK STATE… IN JUST ONE DAY, 50 SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN NEW YORK RECEIVED CALLS THAT THERE WAS A SHOOTING AT THEIR SCHOOL WHEN REALLY THERE WAS NOT… THESE THREATS ADD EVEN MORE STRESS TO STUDENTS THAT HAVE HAD TO WORRY ABOUT SCHOOL SHOOTINGS FOR THEIR ENTIRE LIVES…
MANISCALCO: STUDENTS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TO STUDENTS IN COLLEGE ATTEND SCHOOL EVERYDAY AND THEY’RE NOT SURE IF SOMETHING BAD IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO THEM. THEY WALK AROUND CAMPUSES LIKE THESE AND HOPE FOR THE BEST.
ROMAN SALADINO: EVER SINCE I’VE BEEN IN LIKE FIFTH GRADE ME AND FRIENDS JOKE ABOUT LIKE OH LIKE WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF SOMEONE CAME IN YOU KNOW. I THINK IT’S VERY SAID THAT PEOPLE OUR AGE BUT ALSO SADLY THAT PEOPLE EVEN YOUNGER THAN US HAVE TO SAY STUFF LIKE THAT AND HAVE TO JOKE AROUND TO MAKE LIGHT OF STUFF THAT IS VERY SERIOUS IS REALLY SAD.
MANISCALCO: POLICE AND PUBLIC SAFETY TEAMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE DOING WHAT THEY CAN TO PREPARE THEMSELVES AND STUDENTS FOR THE WORST… THAT INCLUDES THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AT SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY…
CRAIG STONE: WE WANT TO ASSURE THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY WE ARE A 24/7 OPERATION AND WE ARE HERE TO KEEP THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY SAFE WITH A HIGH VISABILITY PRESENCE AND ENGAGING WITH OUR CAMPUS COMMUNITY THROUGH PREVENTION, DETERRENCE, AND EDUCATION.
WILLIAM KARNADI: WE TRY TO SEND COMMUNICATION TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC IN AS MANY WAYS AS POSSIBLE. THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA, TEXTS, THE APP PUSH THROUGH ORANGE SAFE.
MANISCALCO: AN UPTICK IN SWATTING CALLS IS PUTTING FURTHER TRAUMA ON STUDENTS AND IS MAKING IT HARDER FOR DEPARTMENTS LIKE D-P-S TO PREPARE THEM… BECAUSE THE MORE TIMES EMPTY THREATS HAPPEN, THE LESS IT WILL SEEM REAL IF VIOLENCE ENSUES…
JOHN SARDINO: TO ME THE BIGGEST DANGER IS SOMEBODY GETTING COMPLACENT THINKING THAT OH IT MUST BE ANOTHER SWATTING CALL. AS MY COLLEAGUE SAID WE WILL USE THE FULL FORCE OF ORANGE ALERT IF THERE IS AN ACTUAL EVENT ON CAMPUS. FOR THESE SWATTING CALLS WE WILL LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT IT HAPPENED BUT WE DON’T WANT TO PROVIDE THAT FULL ORANGE ALERT EXPERIENCE UNLESS IT IS AN ACTUAL EVENT.
MANISCALCO: A LAW MAKING SWATTING A FELONY COULD BE SIGNED SOON BY GOVERNOR HOCHUL… OLIVIA MANISCALCO, N-C-C NEWS
