All Los Angeles Schools Close after Email Threat

All schools in Los Angeles, the nation’s second-largest school district, shut down Tuesday over an emailed threat to a school board member. 

The Los Angeles Police Chief says the threat described an attack with assault rifles. 

Chief Charlie Beck said that it was specific to all the campuses in the Los Angeles Unified School District, shutting down all 900 schools and 187 public charter schools. 

The email’s “implied threat” involved explosive devices and the “specific threat” was a shooting attack. 

Authorities say the email is believed to have come from an IP address in Frankfurt, Germany. 

Police are defending the decision to close all the schools saying that the city takes threats against its schools seriously given the recent attack in San Bernardino and the frequency of school shootings. 

According to authorities, a threatening email was also sent to New York City officials and many other cities across the country. 

The email sent to New York City said “the students at every school in the New York City school district will be massacred, mercilessly.  And there is nothing you can do to stop it.” 

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters Tuesday that the threat came in the form of a “generic” email and was quickly determined to be a hoax. 

Meanwhile, the White House is speaking out over the threats in support of both school districts.    

Spokesman Josh Earnest says he wont “second-guess” the decision by Los Angeles officials to close all schools, and New York City to remain open. 

Earnest said the FBI has been in touch with California law enforcement authorities.