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Police Dispute Sandy Hook Promise Claim of Thwarted Menlo-Atherton School Shooting

Officials now describe a non-imminent threat with no firearm shown or recovered.

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An Atherton police officer walks back from his patrol car at the Atherton Police Station. The Atherton Police Department said Tuesday that an account from Sandy Hook Promise, which initially credited its anonymous reporting system with stopping a shooting at Menlo-Atherton High School, overstated the danger.
A Sandy Hook Promise benefit in New York City in 2022.
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Overview

  • An anonymous Sept. 10 tip to Sandy Hook Promise’s Say Something system about a former student’s Instagram posts led Menlo-Atherton High School and a nearby campus to enact secure-campus procedures while police located the juvenile the same day.
  • Atherton police say the posts showed ammunition magazines and a rough campus map, not guns, and they report no weapon was seized; instruction continued during the precautionary response.
  • Sandy Hook Promise initially said the posts depicted firearms and that weapons were recovered and promoted the case as its 19th prevented school attack since 2018, but later corrected its statement to remove those claims.
  • The Sequoia Union High School District and Atherton police emphasize there was no ongoing or imminent threat; the district also criticized the nonprofit for issuing a release without consulting local officials.
  • Local reporting says the juvenile was placed in psychiatric care after being located, and some outlets amended earlier stories to reflect the clarified details and the lack of recovered firearms.