Associated Press

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — A North Carolina teacher has been charged with threatening to “shoot up” her school.

A news release from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office says Kristen Thompson was arrested Tuesday on a felony charge of communicating a threat of mass violence.

The sheriff’s office said Thompson abruptly resigned Friday from Pathways Elementary School in Hillsborough. It says other teachers reported that Thompson “made threats to shoot up the school.”

The incident was being addressed by law enforcement and school staff as both a safety and personnel issue, according to Sheriff Charles Blackwood, who said school officials were legally forbidden from commenting on the case.

"A threat of school violence is understandably unsettling for the community," Blackwood said in the statement. "Please know that the school and law enforcement are working together as a team to ensure the last few weeks of the school year are safe and productive for our students.”

A phone listing for Thompson rang unanswered Tuesday afternoon. A sheriff’s spokeswoman said investigators didn’t have information on whether Thompson has a lawyer who can speak on her behalf

Thompson’s name didn’t appear on the school’s website Tuesday, but an archived version indicated that she worked with children in the special education program.

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