Bomb Threats Close Pickaway-Ross Campuses in Chillicothe as Families Press for Charges

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CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — Pickaway-Ross Career and Technology Center closed its main campus and its Adult Education campus on Monday after bomb threats, the latest interruption to hit schools in south-central Ohio this fall.

In a statement Monday morning, Pickaway-Ross Administration said the threats affected the main campus at 895 Crouse Chapel Road and the Adult Education campus at 1410 Industrial Drive. Administrators said the threats were much like others received at schools throughout the area. Both locations are closed for the day so law enforcement can finish thorough sweeps.

“We are working closely with law enforcement, which is currently conducting sweeps of our buildings,” the statement said. “Out of an abundance of caution and to allow law enforcement to complete thorough sweeps, both locations are closed today, Monday, October 5.”

The district said student and staff safety remains its highest priority. Officials said they will keep contacting students and families and will update them on Tuesday’s schedule.

As of Monday morning, the district had not said which buildings were cleared, and no arrest had been announced. Hopewell Heritage Headlines has not independently confirmed that any device was found.

This is not the first time a threat has pulled students out of class in the region this school year. On Sept. 2, Chillicothe High School and Chillicothe Middle School received a bomb threat. Chillicothe Police Capt. Michael A.D. Short said at the time that officers did not believe the threat was credible, a safety check found nothing, and the schools stayed open. The case was left under investigation.

Pickaway-Ross serves high school students from Pickaway and Ross counties, along with adults in career programs at the Industrial Drive site. A full day lost to a sweep is a full day of lab time, clinical training, and job-placement work that does not simply restart the next morning.

Residents have been asking for answers, and for charges when investigators can identify who is making the calls. Parents have said the repeated closures are too much interruption and too much chaos in places that are supposed to be for learning.

Under Ohio law, knowingly starting or spreading a false report of an impending explosion at a school is inducing panic, a second-degree felony under Ohio Revised Code 2917.31. That penalty applies when the report is known to be false and the public place is a school or college. No charges have been filed in Monday’s Pickaway-Ross case. Anyone with information can call the Safer Ohio School Tip Line at 844-723-3764. Tips may be left anonymously.

Heritage Headlines will update this story when the district or law enforcement releases more information on the sweeps or on Tuesday’s schedule.

Next in Pickaway County: Marshalls sets an Oct. 29 opening on Summit Avenue in Circleville

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