A Troy High School student who allegedly threatened to, “shoot up the school” earlier this week reportedly had previous disciplinary issues at a school he attended in Idaho.

That was one of the revelations following a Wednesday morning hearing in the county courthouse in Libby to determine probable cause to file charges and detain him in relation to the alleged incident.

Lincoln County District Judge Matt Cuffe determined there was probable cause to hold and detain a 17-year Troy juvenile following his alleged threats to shoot fellow classmates and harm school employees.

Cuffe declared the individual was a delinquent youth. Under Montana code, that means a youth who has allegedly committed an offense that, if committed by an adult, would constitute a criminal offense. The case will remain under the jurisdiction of the Montana Youth Court.

County attorney Marcia Boris said charges will be filed after the petition is filed, which is required within five days. The juvenile’s next court date will be set at that time.

The juvenile, who will not be publicly identified due to his status as a minor under the age of 18, appeared by video from the Bonner County Juvenile Detention Center in Sandpoint where he is being held following his arrest Tuesday morning. Lincoln County has an agreement with the facility to house juveniles accused of various offenses. The cost to the county is $250 daily, per inmate.

Cuffe heard testimony from Troy Police Chief Travis Miller, Troy Superintendent of Schools Christina Schertel and Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Det. Capt. Brandon Holzer.

County attorney Marcia Boris questioned the trio about the days’ events. 

Schertel, who testified last, recounted the frantic time of learning of the threats early Tuesday morning and beginning the process of ensuring student safety.

“I was woken at 4:15 a.m. Tuesday after a call from principal Tisee Lewis about the threats,” Schertel said. “We have an anonymous tip line where students can call about various things. “Students were named in the threats. He was new to our school and I didn’t know much about him. I looked through his student record and discipline records at his previous school. I called (chief) Travis (Miller) to help because school was going to be beginning soon and we needed to make a quick decision on whether to close the school, which we did.”

Schertel said the individual was already been “busted” for having vaping materials inside the high school, which is not permitted, and of a threat made Monday to a teacher. She also said ammunition and a knife was found in a backpack the juvenile had in his possession while a student at a school in Post Falls, Idaho.

“I began calling parents who I believed had kids that may have been the target of the threats to alert them,” she said. “Some parents were concerned that if he weren’t detained there could be retaliation against the students who alerted us to the threats. They were asking if their kids were gonna be safe and I didn’t know what to tell them. I feel if he is detained our parents will feel better.”

School officials posted on the Troy School District, Montana Facebook page early Tuesday morning about receiving a potential threat regarding a school shooting and closing school for the day while an investigation was conducted.

“We apologize for the inconvenience, but the safety and well-being of your children is our top priority.”

Later Tuesday, school officials posted another message that law enforcement assured them that, “it is safe for students to return to school tomorrow morning on our normal schedule.

“We appreciate your patience, cooperation and understanding throughout the day as we worked alongside local authorities to ensure everyone’s safety.”

Chief Miller also detailed the general sequence of events Tuesday.

“I spoke to Christina and responded to the school,” Miller testified. “We determined school should be closed for the day until the student was located. I spoke to Christina and Tisee and learned of his identity. I continued to investigate and reviewed some issues he had at his previous school.

“I patrolled the schools to find (him) and to alert parents and students who may not of known school was closed. I spoke to the acting chief in Libby and then the county undersheriff before trying to talk to his mother about the threats.”

Chief Miller also spoke to multiple students Tuesday evening about the incidents. 

“One student told me that she heard (him) say, ‘I don’t care who I shoot.’”

Miller explained after getting ahold of the juvenile’s mother, she asked if she could bring him to the police station and the chief agreed to it.

Defense attorney Scott B. Johnson, appointed to the case by the state Public Defender’s Office, asked the chief if weapons were involved.

“No, it was just a threat,” Miller said. “We asked his mother if there were any weapons in the home and she told us there were just airsoft guns. Later she said there was a gun in the residence, but she said it was locked up.”

Boris questioned the chief about the 17-year-old’s ability to have access to guns.

“When we talked to his mom, she said her son talked to a friend about going to the shooting range and she presumed he’d get a gun from a friend,” Miller said.

Det. Capt. Holzer spoke of his efforts in assisting the chief.

“We talked to officials in Post Falls to get a background of this child and we went to the residence to put eyes on it. We also stationed officers at school locations to prevent anyone from coming inside,” he said.

Holzer also pointed out in the justification for charging the offense that the alleged statements by the juvenile deprived other kids’ ability to attend school and “that is their right.”

The mother of the juvenile was also in court for the hearing and declined to comment to The Western News.