SB 2660

Under present law, a person who recklessly, by any means of communication, threatens to commit an act of mass violence on school property or at a school-related activity commits a Class E felony. This bill adds as elements of the offense that the threat must be valid and credible. Present law requires LEAs to establish threat assessment teams to develop comprehensive intervention-based approaches to prevent violence, manage reports of potential threats, and create a system that fosters a safe, supportive, and effective school envi ronment. One duty of a threat assessment team is to establish procedures for the assessment of individuals exhibiting behavior that may present a threat to the health or safety of the individual or others. This bill adds that, i f the individual to be assessed is a student, then the procedure must include an assessment performed by a mental healthcare provider. The assessment may be performed by telehealth and must evaluate the welfare of the child. The mental healthcare provid er must provide a written assessment of the student's mental health to the threat team. Present law requires an LEA that receives cr edible information regarding a threat of violence or significantly disruptive behavior directed toward, or occurring on the grounds of, a public school in the LEA, and that reports the threat or disruptive behavior to a state or local law enforcement agen cy, to also notify the parents and guardians of students enrolled in the public school of the same threat or disruptive behavior the LEA reported to law enforcement . This bill adds that the threat of violence mu st be valid and credible in order to trigger the parental notification requirement. If a student threatens mass violence on school property or at a school-related activity , then present law requires the director of schools or the head of the public charter school, to require the student to submit to a threat assessment to determine whether the threat of mass violence made by the student was a valid threat. This bill specifies that the determin ation must also consider whether the threat of mass violence was credible. Present law requires a director of schools or the head of a public charter school who has knowledge of a valid threat of mass violence on school property or at a school-related activity made by a student to immediately report such action to the municipal or metropolitan police department or sheriff's department having jurisdiction. This bill adds that the threat must also be credible in order to trigger to the law enforcement notification requirement.