OXFORD - A scare for parents and students in Oxford.
Law enforcement sources this afternoon confirmed to Fox 61 that a 5th grade student, at Oxford Center School, threatened to shoot three male classmates.
Parents are now demanding more security immediately.
This threat came to light last week, on the morning of Halloween, according to parents. So, several dozen showed up at the Board of Selectmen meeting Wednesday night to plead their case.
A mother of two girls, who attend Oxford Center School, says recently their teachers went through training about how to protect themselves and their students should an outside threat enter a building.
"It was to flip over desks and throws staplers and that is not how we want to protect our children," said a parent, Jenifer Dupont.
She was among the parents attending last night's Board of Selectmen meeting demanding more than just the two roving police officers that randomly visit the town's four schools now.
"It does make sense," said George Temple. Oxford's First Selectman, of the parents' request. "I mean, I sympathize with them."
Temple says he appreciates their passion and concern.
"In fact, we’re going to have a meeting this (Wednesday) afternoon and we’re going to go forward with this," he said.
Well, he kept his promise. Temple says the town and Oxford Board of Education will move forward immediately to hire four or five new, part time School Safety Officers, who will be fully armed. The cost is expected to be in the neighborhood of $125,000 a year, Temple estimates.
"It’s something that I have been advocating for for quite some time," Temple said. "At our last school safety meeting, I suggested let’s have SROs in every school ."
Certainly, news of additional security is welcome for all parents in Oxford.
"My daughter was part of this investigation," said Dupont. "Unfortunately, she had to deal with things that are well above her age."
The Superintendent of Schools did not respond to our request for comment on the matter of how long the student's suspension will last.