Bismarck Tribune

By JENNYMICBy JENNYMICHAEL

The Morton County Sheriff's Department is investigating a note found at Hebron School that contains threats toward two students.

Morton County Sheriff Dave Shipman said two girls found the note in the school's Interactive Television room and gave it to Secondary Principal Steve Maershbecker between Jan. 16 and Jan. 19. The school informed the sheriff's department of the note on Monday, Shipman said.

The note appears to have been a written conversation passed between three sophomore students, Shipman said.

The names of three other female sophomores were mentioned in the note, and there were threats against two of the girls in the note, he said.

The threats involved inflicting bodily harm on two girls, identified only by first names, and smashing one's face with a brick, Shipman said.

Maershbecker said the note was written on the back of paper from a class of seven students. However, that does not mean the paper could not have been picked up by someone in another class, he said.

"The list is narrowed down to seven students who could have possessed the paper to start with," Shipman said.

Maershbecker said he did not alert law enforcement immediately about the note because he decided to watch and listen for rumors. Hebron has 85 students in grades seven through 12, and no class has more than 16 students, he said.

The principal said he turned the note over to the sheriff's department after asking a deputy who should handle the situation.

The investigation may have been easier if school authorities had notified law enforcement about the note sooner, Shipman said. He said it can be hard to pin down who was where on a particular date after the fact.

"It makes it much more difficult,"he said. "The sooner we get notified about something, the sooner we can get it narrowed down."

Maershbecker characterized the note as a "teenage thing that kids do." He said school officials consider the note serious, but also believe teenagers often "write things with not a lot of intention." Students may write something because they are mad or bored, he said.

Authorities believe all of the involved students are sophomores at the school, Shipman said.

"Obviously, you want to take it seriously,"Shipman said. "It may just be kid talk, but it still needs to be checked into."

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com.)