CANDLER COUNTY, Ga. () — As the back-to-school season approaches, a local law enforcement body is cautioning the community about the serious consequences of online behavior. They emphasize the importance of recognizing when a joke can be taken too far, especially on social media.
The Candler County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) took 45-year-old Jason Timothy Bolyard into custody on July 10, charging him with making terroristic threats after he posted on social media using a pseudonym.
“He threatened to engage in mass shootings and specifically mentioned schools in Metter,” revealed CCSO Captain Stanley Slater, pointing to the serious nature of Bolyard’s online threats.
Bolyard’s arrest did not come as a surprise due to his previous interactions with the authorities.
“He has been on law enforcement’s radar for many years as someone who frequently posts concerning messages, though past content hadn’t crossed the line of legal violations,” Slater explained. “Moreover, he has been in contact with federal agencies like the FBI and the Secret Service.”
Slater explained that despite posting under a “burner account,” CCSO was able to track the IP address back to Bolyard.
Slater explained what you can and can’t post online.
“Terroristic threats law is simply that the person has to threat or make a threat to commit any act of violence, release any hazardous substance or burn or damage property,” he said. “Outside of that, any other comment you make on Facebook or any other social media or email is not considered terroristic threats.”
Slater said even if you’re questioning a post or are concerned about one, forward it to local law enforcement.
“We would prefer to know about it,” he said about concerning posts. “We get these things all the time, and again, it’s just a lot easier for us to look at it and try to get to the bottom of it rather than somebody seeing something they’re concerned about and then not reporting it to law enforcement.”
He added, “It’s so frequent when we have these mass shootings that all kinds of people come forward after the fact with concerns they had that were never reported. It’s almost always the case.”
Slater told that a conviction of terroristic threats that “suggest the death of those threatened” is punishable by imprisonment of not less than one year and not more than five years plus up to a $1,000 fine.