Brainerd Public School Cancels All Activity Today Amid TikTok Trend Promoting Violence

UPDATE: Brainerd police say they arrested two juveniles late Thursday night for making threats of violence to Brainerd Public Schools. Both juveniles are currently being held at the Northwestern Minnesota Juvenile Center pending charges of Threats of Violence.

Original story follows:

Brainerd Public Schools canceled all activities and buildings due to the Morrison County Sheriff’s Office report investigating a TiKToK video promoting violence in schools today, December 17.

Parents were notified school would be canceled and all building would be shut down today via an email sent by Brainerd Superintendent Laine Larson.

“Because the safety of our students and staff is our number one priority, Brainerd Public Schools will be closed Friday, December 17, 2021, for all students and staff. This decision was made at the request of local law enforcement. This is not an E-Learning Day, and there will be no access to our facilities. There will be no before or after-school child care and no extracurricular activities. We will follow up with more information as it is made available.”

Yesterday, the Morrison County Sheriff’s Office reported on a TiKToK trend that emerged indicating widespread violence to schools nationwide on today, December 17. They also mentioned there is no indication of a nationwide specific threat, however, they wanted their residents to know they were investigating the information brought forward by the Royalton School District.

The information was regarding a video of a social media post that may have identified three school districts in Morrison County; Little Falls School District, Royalton School District and Pierz School District.

The Sheriff’s Office along with the Little Falls, Pierz and Royalton Police Departments, and
local schools take this matter very seriously. If anyone is aware of potential threats to our local schools, please call our Sheriff’s Office at (320) 632-9233. Information about criminal activity should always be reported to local law enforcement and your first call should be 911 to report any crime in progress.