Concluding a nearly two-hour lock-down at Kearsley High School on Dec. 4, a freshman was escorted out of school in handcuffs, arrested by Genesee Township Police as a result of a threatening Twitter post.

This was not the only incident of a student using social media to make threats regarding a local school this month.

A few days before Kearsley’s incident, an anonymous gun threat on the After School app prompted police presence and an FBI investigation at Flushing High School.

A few days after Kearsley’s incident, Brandon High School’s students and staff had several anonymous domestic terror threats on the After School app made against them, which brought a large police presence to the school Dec. 9 for security.

Technology has transformed how the current generation of young people communicate, but it has also changed how crime occurs.

According to Lt. Robert Watters, Genesee Township Police, computer-related crimes were rare 20 years ago.

Watters said that there has been “a tremendous rise in computer-related crimes over the last 10 years.”

With social media being a big part of digital communication, it has played a role in the increase, Watters said.

The anonymity of social media has led students to make threatening posts that they do not think can be easily traced back to them.

Principal Brian Wiskur said it is important to remember that anything students post online is being monitored by the federal government.

“They’re (the federal government) looking for key words,” Wiskur said. “It’s just amazing how quickly they can find out who sent them.”

Students may not realize that a post is not truly anonymous or temporary.

Watters said, “When you’re dealing with digital media, there is a record of everything.”

He warned that thinking a post is completely anonymous or gone is not completely accurate.

“Police may recover files, pictures, (and) videos,” Watters said, “that can be used for a criminal investigation.”

After a student who committed an online crime is found, he can face several consequences.

Watters said the first level of discipline is at the school level.

“They (school officials) will deal with their in-house administrative discipline, whether it be a suspension or expulsion,” he said.

The next step, Watters said, is criminal prosecution, “which could lead to fines or incarceration.”

“Posting information about someone else may not necessarily constitute as a crime,” Watters added, “but it may constitute a civil lawsuit because you’re posting untruthful information of somebody else.”

Both Watters and Wiskur noted that the level of criminal prosecution is dependent upon the age of the perpetrator.

Wiskur said that the incident at Kearsley was caused by the actions of a minor, while the Flushing incident was triggered by an adult.

The 18 year old in Flushing was arraigned in Genesee County District Court on Dec. 9.

He pleaded not guilty to one count of malicious use of a telecommunication device. If found guilty, he could serve up to six months in jail and also be fined up to $1,000.

Watters said students need to remember that if they are convicted they could have a record attached to their names for the rest of their lives.

“Anybody who is convicted of a crime as an adult has a record of that on their criminal record,” Watters said.

The Brandon incident involved a 17-year-old student.

That student was charged in an Oakland County District Court on Dec. 11 with making a terrorist threat and using a computer to commit a crime.

The Brandon student could go to prison for up to 40 years.

According to Watters, the simple way to avoid misusing social media is to use it carefully.

Wiskur said that the biggest thing is that too many teenagers do not think about the consequences before they post.

“We live in a society where you really have to be careful about what you put in writing,” Wiskur said. “You could end up ruining your life over something stupid.”

MORE INFORMATION: If you are interested in reading The Flint Journal stories about the threats in each school district, click the following links: Kearsley, Flushing, Brandon

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Eclipse has chosen to not disclose the names of the accused in this story because the editors do not want to give undue publicity to them.