Ex-Student Pleads Guilty In Threat Case Charge Stemmed From Incident In High School’S Detention Room

A former Post Falls High School student pleaded guilty this week to a misdemeanor after threatening to kill family members of a school employee.

The 18-year-old was charged with disturbing the peace, a crime with a possible sentence of up to 90 days in jail and three years of probation. Sentencing has been set for Feb. 28.

The incident occurred Sept. 23, when high school employee Chris Greenfield was supervising the school’s detention room. The boy became “disruptive and obnoxious,” according to a report filed with the Post Falls Police Department.

Greenfield called Assistant Principal Mark Jones for help, and the boy responded with profanity to a question Jones asked, the report said.

The boy was taken to the principal’s office. As he was leaving the classroom, the report says, he turned to Greenfield and said, “I better not find your car in the parking lot.”

He returned a few minutes later and threatened to kill Greenfield’s mother, grandmother and daughter.

“What I’m concerned about is that this kid have some punishment,” Greenfield said. “I just hope he doesn’t get off with no punishment.”

Greenfield was a bus driver for the Post Falls School District for 12 years before being reassigned in March, against her will, to work in the detention room. She sued the district in November, protesting that move and asking to be returned to her former position. That case is pending in the 1st District Court.

Greenfield said she also would like to see a change in the state law that deals with abuse of schoolteachers. State law makes it a misdemeanor to “upbraid, insult or abuse any teacher of the public schools.” Because Greenfield is not a teacher, the law does not apply to her. She thinks it should be changed to cover other school employees as well.

“It’s important if they have a law, that it protects all individuals,” Greenfield said. “I’m in here by myself, and that law doesn’t protect me.”

Assistant Superintendent Jerry Keane said the boy no longer attends Post Falls High School, although he would not comment further on the boy’s status.

“We took immediate action,” Keane said. “Any threats kids make are going to be taken very seriously and thoroughly investigated.”

District policy says any students making threats will be subject to at least three days of suspension. Depending on the severity of the incident, further action can be taken.