Full Notification

Approximately one month ago, as an added safety measure in the wake of shootings and violent acts carried out in schools nationally and to help with the contagious unease felt by our children, parents and school officials, the P3 Tips app was introduced in Beaufort County schools by the Sheriff’s Office. The P3 Tips app affords students the opportunity to anonymously report suspicious activity to law enforcement in the interest of vetting and averting threats to school safety.

Early Thursday evening, through the P3 Tips app, the Sheriff’s Office  received information on a possible threat to Lowcountry Montessori school's safety. Only having the first name of the male subject in the tip, investigators from the Sheriff's Office and the Port Royal Police, as well as administrators from Lowcountry Montessori, worked together and, within a few hours, were able to identify and locate the subject at his Beaufort County residence.

To assess the possible threat, investigators interviewed the subject and his parents about the information contained in the tip and whether the subject had access to firearms. The subject advised that while at school he had stated some things out of anger, but never intended to harm anyone. Ultimately, it was determined that the subject did not pose a threat to Lowcountry Montessori’s safety and did not have access to firearms, as the subject’s parents granted investigators consent to search their home, in which no firearms were found.

We appreciate the anonymous student who used the P3 Tips app to provide us with timely information on what he/she perceived as a possible threat to Lowcountry Montessori’s safety. This tip provided us with the opportunity to rapidly assess and, in this case, discount the threat and serves as an example of what the P3 Tips app is designed to do. With schools letting out for summer break, we would ask students—if they have not already—to install the P3 Tips app on their mobile devices to anonymously report any suspicious/criminal activities to law enforcement.

The P3 Tips app is a free download and can be found by searching for P3 Tips in the Google Play or the iPhone App Store. Please see the attached flier for more information on the P3 Tips app. 

We appreciate your partnership and continued commitment to the safety of our community.