BTAM: The Critical Role of Parents

 On Tuesday, November 30, 2021, school administrators at a high school in Michigan called a student’s parents in for a meeting after the student was observed with drawings of a gun, bullets, and the words “the thoughts won’t stop, help me.” His parents opted not to remove him from school for the day, or to check his bag for a weapon, and two hours later the 15-year-old opened fire, killing four people and wounding seven others. His parents were ultimately convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the role their inaction played in the resulting massacre.

 It is impossible to predict what might have happened if the parents in this case had made different choices, but the case exemplifies the critical role parents play in preventing terrorism or targeted violence and, more broadly, in the threat assessment and management process.

Our evaluation of the violence prevention efforts in Wood County highlights the many ways in which parents can support or impede the assessment and treatment of at-risk youth. Even though our interview protocol did not include any questions about parents, they were mentioned 88 times across 21 of the 27 interviews we conducted with county stakeholders.4 Analysis of these interviews and reviews of case data make clear that parents have significant influence in the threat assessment and management process because of their power to decide whether to provide history and context to stakeholders, sign releases of information, pay for services, and bring their child to services. As one school administrator we interviewed told us, “If you get a combative parent, there is nothing you can do”