MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Macomb County Prosecutor's Office says it's taking action against students who make "kill lists" and that those students should be prepared to face consequences.
"These are things that after the Oxford tragedy that occurred will not be tolerated," Macomb County Prosecutor Pete Lucido said.
Authorities in Oakland County said the deaths in Oxford were found to be random, but Lucido says there've been about 40 recent cases of students in Macomb County making kill lists. So, he's cracking down.
"They may think in their minds that this is acceptable or that this is just a joke. There's nothing acceptable. There's nothing jokingly. A threat made on one's life is a threat, and it will be prosecuted to the fullest extended of the law," he said.
Lucido said the first goal is to seek charges and secondly have the student offender evaluated psychologically. 7 Action News spoke with several parents and a grandparent of children in Macomb County schools who say it's a great move by the prosecutor.
"They need to make it more strict because we have children that are not able or are afraid to speak up," one parent said. "They may see what's going on and the end result, it's too late."
Another parent said, "Kids who do things like that don't need to be punished. They need to be helped. They need to be spoken to. They need to maybe see a professional."
Lucido said there's no such thing as an idle threat in today's world and that each are taken seriously on his watch.
"Whether they need mental help, mental counseling, whether they need any kind of intervention in regards to family matter. Those things we need to ignite as soon as possible so that we don't have an active carry out," he explained.
