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OUR YUCAIPA | JANUARY 2016 13 calimesa Joint uniFied district Balances responsiBilitY and message Yucaipa police department Focuses on Facts and puBlic saFetY; avoids social media YCJUSD, got word of the threat about each other the news. Unlike us, she about. the police department but knew there Before dawn, she was at her office, Onodera, Yucaipa Chief of Police, gathering message that would go out to parents via media. we don't want a two way street of record the message. It was received already made the decision to keep decided after reading Facebook posts, some an hour," Binks said. It became obvious get enough information out to as many possible and still control the message," she information is incredibly accurate. That the problem. Rumors ruled the day," out to parents who had posted various individually. speculation. Speculation breeds fear information in cooperation with city and toward improving communication Twitter feed that will scroll on the site as are always welcome to come to the information." her on Twitter: @calibinks1. district had a meeting with parents and law having new information doesn't really matter. update. Sometimes no news can be just have to do better. We need to get comfortable with the information we're giving using social media responsibly." "Your expectation of us is to handle the problem," said Anthony Onodera, Yucaipa Chief of Police, "not to get information out." Onodera learned of the YHS threat from his wife at 10 pm on Nov. 18, who had been texted by a friend. He contacted the high school Resource Officer and began gathering information. Deputies followed leads through the night. At 3 am, they'd reached dead ends. "We shut it down until 5," he said. At 5:30 am, he convened his team and connected with school district officials to begin formulating a plan. At 6:30 am, officers arrived at the high school campus and reinvigorated the investigation. At the same time, parents were taking to Facebook and rumors were starting to fly. Calls to the police department begin to flood in both with tips and worried parents asking if they should send their kids to school. "People are looking for assurances and there really are no assurances," he said. "Safety is relative to each person's views and experiences." While stories grew on the YB, Onodera continued his investigation, pursuing leads and assessing facts, not following social media. "If I spent my energy addressing rumors, I'd never get anything done." Onodera doesn't look to Facebook as a source of information or a place to disseminate information. "We've identified the source that works for us. That's Nixle." Nixle was launched in 2007 as an open communication and engagement platform that connects public safety, municipalities, schools, businesses, residents and the communities they serve. Nixle enables real-time, two-way communication through text, email, voice messages, social media, and the Nixle mobile app. Onodera encourages residents of Yucaipa to get the Nixle app called OneBridge. "Nixle can't be compromised as easily as other social media." While the day progressed, the investigation lead to the student who had allegedly made the threat. Simultaneously on Facebook, posts were getting closer to the truth but were still not verified facts. Onodera said that the department will never embrace Facebook as a tool for critical communication. "If you're aware of a situation, notify someone in law enforcement. Don't post it. Sit on it. Protect your family and yourself. Have faith in public safety." He added that the police department is working on an emergency 911 texting that will send them GPS coordinates of the caller directly to law enforcement. "Technology and social media are changing every day. Maybe in the next generation they'll have it all figured out." For now, everyone involved seems to be doing their best.

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