“If they had something on them, they’d know it,” she said. “...We don’t want our schools to be like the other schools, Columbine and Virginia Tech. They never knew that would happen then somebody all of a sudden had a gun at school and went to shooting. We just don’t want that to happen at our school.”

The most effective deterrent to violence in schools, McCoy said, isn’t walk-thru metal detectors which create their own set of difficulties but diligent instructors, students who take the attitude of “not in our school” and who report incidents as they occur, close cooperation between school officials and law enforcement, the use when needed of handheld metal detectors to follow up on tips and day-to-day effective discipline in schools.

“What makes our school safe from our perspective is the fact that kids have a relationship with faculty and are willing to talk about things. Mr. McCoy made the statement, “Not in our school.” If they take that attitude and let us know and have confidence in us, we’ll handle it in the most effective manner. That’s what makes our school safe. Ninety percent of what we find is because somebody told us,” Jones said.

“...Certainly at the end of the year, we’re more diligent. ...We’re a little bit more cognizant and a little bit more diligent. That’s what you have to be,” the principal said.

CCHS is manned with two school resource officers from the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office.

“We certainly want to take a proactive stance toward violence in our schools, but then again, I don’t feel we need to overreact,” Sheriff Al Whittington said.

McCoy contacted The Moultrie Observer to inform the public and ask for help in “sending a clear message of the significance of consequences for those whose poor judgment could put others in danger,” he said.

“There are severe consequences, and the kids need to know that,” MPD Chief Frank Lang said.

“It’s steep,” Jones said.

Any person with information surrounding this case or any other potential threat at the schools is encouraged to contact the school system and law enforcement. McCoy made note of the “quick support and professionalism” of both the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office and the Moultrie Police Department. 

“We deeply appreciate the day-to-day cooperative effort of all agencies,” he said.