Livingston High resumes classes after bomb threat prompts lockdown

A 16-year-old student will face felony criminal charges for allegedly making threats against Livingston High School, prompting the campus to go on lockdown Tuesday, police said.

The girl, whose name was not released, admitted leaving a phone message Monday evening warning that she was going to plant a bomb or “shoot up” the school, Livingston police Lt. Chris Soria reported. The girl, a student at Livingston High, will face two felony charges of making a false threat against a school, Soria said.

The school secretary heard the message early Tuesday morning, and Principal Mandy Ballenger called police. School staff members recognized the girl’s voice in the message. Police were familiar with the girl because she made similar threats in the past to individual students via text message, Soria said.

The girl was arrested and taken to juvenile hall, police said.

As students arrived at school Tuesday morning, they were directed to the cafeteria. An automated phone message was sent to parents, who were allowed to pick up their children, said Ralph Calderon, assistant superintendent of human resources for the Merced Union High School District.

Classes resumed after Livingston police conducted a search of the school without finding evidence of a bomb or potential shooting, Soria said. The Merced Police Department also responded to the scene Tuesday morning, bringing a bomb-sniffing canine.

“We always, always are going to react in an overabundance of caution,” Calderon said. “The main thing here is to keep students and staff safe.”

Calderon praised the school staff members, saying they followed procedure in a chaotic situation.

Livingston High School has about 1,130 students in grades nine through 12.

This story was originally published October 27, 2015 at 12:02 PM with the headline "Livingston High resumes classes after bomb threat prompts lockdown."