Schools, Police Meet Over ‘Stranger Danger’ Concern
Details about the latest “stranger danger” incident at a Colorado Springs area school were released Friday by Colorado Springs police and School District 11.
The details continue a disturbing trend. Since the beginning of the fall semester, 4 such incidents have been reported in the district.
Authorities said in the latest incident, a female student at Sabin Middle School was walking to the school just before 8:30 a.m. Monday when a man approached her and said in Spanish, “I will get you later.” Police described the man as Hispanic, between the ages of 30 and 40, of medium height and build, wearing a black shirt and brown jeans. He left the scene in an older-model, dark-colored pickup truck.
The girl wasn’t hurt, authorities said, but she didn’t report the incident during the school day. She told her father when she went home, and the father called a security guard who told school staff the next day. Authorities said the father also contacted police.
District 11 spokeswoman Devra Ashby said the school posted a warning on its Facebook page Tuesday, received a police report of the incident Thursday and sent letters home to parents Thursday.
Anessa Williams, a parent who takes her children to nearby Penrose Elementary School, said she believes the man is the same one she saw last month, a block from the school.
“We noticed a strange guy just sitting there,” said Williams. “A woman was behind the wheel (of a car), and we thought that was kind of odd. They looked out of place. When they noticed we were watching them, the man (in the passenger’s seat) put his head down. She looked directly at us and (drove) off.”
Williams said she made the connection after hearing about Monday’s incident. Yet she didn’t notify authorities.
“My husband thought I was being crazy, so I just ignored it,” she said. “But I just had a gut feeling there was something wrong.”
Authorities said failing to promptly report such an incident makes finding a suspect difficult. They said they will renew efforts to educate students and parents about what to do in a “stranger danger” incident.
“We want to get the message across that students can report to any school official,” said Ashby. “The sooner we get the report, the sooner we can pass it along.”
Police spokeswoman Barbara Miller said the common perception of a stranger doesn’t match how most kids define a stranger.
“It’s very difficult to tell a child to be alert for strangers,” said Miller. “They don’t know what that is. They’re thinking of maybe a mysterious-looking person. Most of the time it’s a person who looks harmless and doesn’t seem to be a threat.”
Miller said police may ask officers to perform role-playing scenarios with students to help them prepare for “stranger danger.” She also advised that kids walk to and from school in groups and not alone, that parents drive or walk with their kids to and from school, that students avoid talking to anyone they don’t know and that parents regularly discuss the issue with their kids.
Authorities said schools have staff standing outside at the start and end of the school day, and security cameras. However, the incidents have not happened close enough to the school to be spotted.
