The online threats of violence that led to increased police presences and several arrests at Dallas-area school districts this week also prompted changes to high school athletics, officials said Thursday.
Most — if not all — of the threats were proven fake or unconfirmed, according to school and police officials. But districts are taking extra precautions, especially after Kimball JV football player David Washington was shot and killed last Friday at a Love’s gas station across the street from Kincaide Stadium, where South Oak Cliff played Duncanville that night.
Dallas ISD announced several changes to this week’s football schedules. Kimball’s freshman game Wednesday was moved to Midlothian, and the same day DISD had the Spruce JV play at Wilmer-Hutchins. Thursday’s Kimball vs. Midlothian varsity football game was moved from Sprague Stadium to Midlothian ISD Stadium.
“All of the games for this week that have the adjustments in venues or times, it is really centered around the overall safety,” said Robyn Harris, deputy chief of communication services for Dallas ISD. “It’s not necessarily connected to the Love’s gas station incident.”
The threats were aimed at districts in Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Cedar Hill, Dallas, DeSoto, Duncanville, Ennis, Fort Worth, Irving, Royse City and others. Harris said the state as a whole is looking into the matter and that the Texas Department of Public Safety has gotten involved.
“Just in North Texas alone there have been an overwhelmingly high number of social media claims,” Harris said. “As we know, to this hour, none of them have been credible or substantiated, but because so many have received them, we have to take each one seriously and vet it out.
“Because it has happened in such a large succession or quick succession, there were some communities who wanted to make sure they could do a heightened awareness or different game schedules.”
Harris said she didn’t know if there was any discussion in Dallas ISD about canceling athletic events. Saturday’s Madison vs. Lincoln varsity game was moved from a night game at Kincaide Stadium to a 10:30 a.m. start at Forester Field.
“That’s about safety, but it also came at the request of the schools,” Harris said. “They noticed the game last year was around a similar time, and they wanted to be consistent with what it was last year as opposed to a later time.”
Cedar Hill ISD communications coordinator Michael Sudhalter said that the district postponed a tennis match and a middle school game because of the online threats. Friday’s Cedar Hill at Red Oak varsity football game is still being played as scheduled.
Duncanville ISD announced on social media Wednesday that effective immediately, all students must have a current student ID badge and be accompanied by a parent or guardian to attend Duncanville athletic events on campus.
Venues were changed for two Dallas ISD varsity football games on Friday, Sept. 20, with the Spruce vs. South Oak Cliff game now being played at Wilmer-Hutchins and the Wilmer-Hutchins vs. Carter game now being held at Kincaide Stadium. Harris said those changes were “completely unrelated to anything happening this week.”
Staff writers Lana Ferguson and Talia Richman contributed to this report.
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