No federal charges coming after Stevenson High attack threat

A Fox Valley teenager who police said threatened a Columbine-style attack at Adlai E. Stevenson High School as a prank will not face federal charges, authorities said today.

The unidentified 17-year-old could still face local prosecution, however. Police in Lincolnshire, home of one of the nation's four Adlai E. Stevenson High Schools, are investigating and plan to confer with the Lake County state's attorney's office about possible charges.

Authorities could decide next week if the teen, who lives in the Fox River Grove area, will be charged, Lincolnshire Police Chief Randy Melvin said.

The threat was discovered Tuesday morning on a Web site devoted to Japanese animation and comic books, authorities said.

The message didn't specify which Adlai E. Stevenson High School was targeted, officials said. In addition to Lincolnshire, one is in the Bronx, N.Y. and two are in Michigan.

The post, which threatened violence would erupt Wednesday morning, was reported to the FBI. Within hours, agents traced the message to a home computer in the far Northwest suburbs, an agency spokesman said.

The teen, questioned along with his parents, told agents the posting was a hoax and said he didn't know there was a Stevenson High campus in the Chicago area, the FBI said.

No one was arrested.

Although the FBI characterized the teen's message as a terrorist threat, federal charges were unlikely because of his age, the agency said.

Lincolnshire police are interested in pursuing charges, however, because of the hoax's impact on the community. The department was deluged with calls from concerned parents as news of the threat spread, police said, and more than 500 students missed school Wednesday, far more than usual.