DENVER — Oftentimes, hoax perpetrators are seeking attention and reaction from the community, and we don’t want to help them in that pursuit. We also don’t want to encourage copycat hoaxes.

However, as at least 14 Colorado schools received “swatting” calls Wednesday, specialists point to a growing trend we believe you should be aware of.

Swatting is the act of calling first responders with a fake emergency to coax them into sending a significant police presence to a specific address

Ken Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, says he’s been tracking a “spate of school swatting threats that has gone on for months” across the United States. He says many previous mass swatting events have been traced to actors from foreign countries.

“Swatting threats typically cross multiple school districts, multiple communities, oftentimes multiple states and originate internationally,” Trump said. “They create anxiety, fear, uncertainty about school safety, drain local first responders from other needs out in the broader community, and can extend over a period of time while the investigation goes on — oftentimes for weeks or sometimes months.”

While it is, at this point, unclear if the multiple threats to Colorado schools were coordinated, Trump says these bad actors often have the specific goal of creating chaos, confusion and fear.

“These threats typically turn out to be unfounded, not credible, but every threat needs to be treated seriously [and] investigated thoroughly,” Trump said. “There’s not only a massive drain of law enforcement resources, but also swatting fatigue and fatigue by school districts: the risk of school communities not taking threats seriously, becoming complacent, and not treating each one seriously when there could be one possible threat that turns out to be credible.”

Sergeant Ryan Scheevel with the Boulder Police Department says he was impressed by the response of students and staff at Boulder High School Wednesday morning. The entire school’s lockdown procedure made law enforcement’s job of evacuating and sweeping the school for the potential threat much easier.

“It was very obvious that they had trained for that,” Scheevel said. “I would implore all schools, employers, anything like that to have a plan in place.”

Scheevel was just a couple hours into his shift Wednesday morning when he heard a weapons tone over his radio, and dispatchers relaying reports of a possible active shooter at Boulder High School. He and his fellow officers quickly realized the threat was likely a hoax, both through conversations with school administrators and messages from dispatch of other fake threats being called in across the state. Still, they had to push forward, per protocol, to ensure it was, in fact, a false alarm.

“We went and had them go into lockdown, and then started going [on] a systematic search of the school, hoping that we weren’t going to find anything, but planning that if we [did] find something — whether it’s a suspect or a victim or somebody’s injured — that we have the resources and a plan in place to deal with that,” Scheevel said.

Even after the all-clear, Scheevel and his fellow officers had to rely on their training and support from one another to process the other great cost of swatting threats: the emotional drain it puts on our law enforcement, teachers, and students.

“Two of my kids are school age, so anytime we get a call at a school, it definitely heightens your sense of what’s going on there,” he said. “When you’ve removed yourself from you that situation, you really think about like, 'That could have been my kids in there.’”

This article was written by Rob Harris for Scripps News Denver.

BROOKVILLE, Ind. —

On Wednesday morning, the Franklin County Sheriff's Department was contacted by officials after Franklin County High School received a tip of an alleged threat.

"We take all threats serious and our deputies are working with school officials to conduct a thorough investigation," said Franklin County Sheriff Peter Cates. "We would also like to commend the person or persons who came forward and reported the alleged threat to the school officials."

While deputies are investigating, there will be an increased law enforcement presence at the high school. Anyone with information about the threat is asked to contact Franklin County Sheriff's Department at 765-647-4138.

HAMILTON COUNTY, Ohio —

A student has been arrested and charged after a social media threat lead Reading Community City Schools to cancel classes Thursday.

The Reading Police Department said they were made aware of a Snapchat going among students warning them not to come to school on Thursday.

"There is a risk that one of the students will shoot up the school tomorrow just take precaution and DO NOT GO," the Snapchat's text read.

Police provided an update saying they had identified the student who made the threats at school on Wednesday and said the student was being interviewed by authorities and school officials. That student was later arrested and charged, Reading police said.

Reading school leaders sent out a letter to families Wednesday evening saying they had become aware of the potential threat via the Snapchat post earlier in the evening. They said they were working with police in the investigation.

Since the investigation is ongoing, the school district said Reading schools will be closed Thursday "in an abundance of caution."

School officials said they would continue to update students, parents and teachers as information becomes available.

Reading schools aren't the only school district dealing with school threats.

In the last five days, students who go to class at Connor Middle School, Milford Junior High, Fairfield Freshman School and Franklin High have all had to deal with the fallout caused by a threat investigation.

CINCINNATI —

Cincinnati police said a man stabbed two people in Westwood on Thanksgiving Day.

Officers shocked him with a taser and shot him in the leg while he was still wielding the knife, according to police.

Investigators said the officers involved are now on administrative leave, which is standard protocol.

Meanwhile, neighbors who saw the chaos are glad it's over.

The FOP president told WLWT that the suspect has since been treated and released from the hospital, but he will be charged.

It was an unnerving way for people to spend the holiday.

"I seen the arguing and all of that took place, but then afterwards, police showed up, all of that came and I'm like, 'Oh my God,'" a neighbor who didn't want to be identified told WLWT.

The neighbor has only lived in Lafeuille Apartment Homes for a few months but said this holiday with her two small children has now been marred by madness next door.

"I mean, even if there is a little bit of family drama, you're not expecting it to end in stabbings. So, yes, it definitely is shocking and crazy. Especially for it to happen in this apartment complex," she said.

She didn't want to be identified to protect her family.

Cincinnati police said a 911 call came in Thursday afternoon, reporting someone in an apartment trying to stab people.

They said two officers responded and found a man and a woman stabbed.

Investigators told WLWT that officers told the suspect to drop a knife and when the suspect wouldn't comply, they fired a gun and deployed a taser.

The specific timeline has not been released by CPD.

"We don't have that set of sequence of events as of yet," Asst. Chief Terri Theetge said.

Police said the suspect was shot in the leg.

He was at UC Medical Center and in stable condition, police said.

Officers said no one has life-threatening injuries.

FOP President Dan Hils released a statement about the incident late Thursday night:

"Today, while most Cincinnati residents safely enjoyed Thanksgiving with family, our local police officers were on patrol, protecting people. One of those officers was called to a local home after a 911 call about a dangerous man with a knife who was cutting people. She and another officer came upon a man wielding a knife. That man refused orders to drop the knife and then approached the officers with the knife. Both officers immediately saw the threat, and both acted quickly. One officer deployed his Taser device while the other simultaneously fired her service weapon. They stopped the threat. The criminal was treated and released from the hospital, and he will be charged. Both officers are uninjured. Everyone in Cincinnati can be thankful that, even on holidays, they have brave, quick-thinking police officers on patrol, risking their own lives to protect others."

It's still not clear what led up to the stabbings, as CPD remains tight-lipped.

Neighbors said they are relieved the incident is over.

"I didn't want them watching that. I was watching it but I was keeping them away from the windows, when the arguing, you know, I didn't want them to hear all of that. It's Thanksgiving, you know," the neighbor said.

No one at the apartment involved answered the door.

There was blood on the ground as well as empty bandage wrappers just outside the door.

Cincinnati police said they believe the victims and the suspect are family members.

They haven't shared the suspect's name, age, or if he has a criminal history.

Police said the Criminal Investigation Section is now investigating and the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office is involved.