Craig Osmanberg makes an appearance in Lewis County Superior Court Monday afternoon in Chehalis.
Adna School District officials are reviewing how they alert parents to noteworthy happenings at or near the school following the arrest of a man accused of shooting a gun and making threatening comments involving teachers on property adjacent to Adna Elementary.
A letter dated Jan. 15 was sent to all parents at the school, said Adna Elementary Principal Lisa Dallas, filling them in on details of the alleged incident that happened Jan. 10.
On that day, Craig R. Osmanberg, 62, of Chehalis was accused of firing a gun multiple times into the ground, on property adjacent to the school’s playground. While deputies let the school know that it’s not technically illegal to fire a gun on such property — albeit with some stipulations — they later found Osmanberg was not eligible to possess a gun due to a previous felony conviction.
Chief Bruce Kimsey with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office explained that the stipulations making the act of shooting a gun illegal, assuming the area isn’t a designated no-shoot zone, would include reckless actions — for instance firing at something that might cause a bullet to ricochet.
The letter sent to parents says the gunshots were heard at about 11:55 a.m., near the end of recess. There were somewhere between five and 10 shots heard, and in quick succession. Kids were outside for recess at the time, and were directed back into the building, according to the letter. Staff members didn’t see anyone on the property; they only heard the gunshots.
Later that day, at 2:50 p.m., students were being loaded onto busses when a dog came running from the property where authorities believe the gunshots had come from. According to the letter, the dog ran onto one of the busses. Osmanberg, who is not named in the letter, allegedly stood on his property and yelled to the dog to come back, and for the kids not to touch the dog. The letter also says he “made threatening remarks” to the school staff.
Court documents go into more detail, saying Osmanberg yelled: “Kids don’t need to listen to the f****** teachers! I can shoot the teachers!”
School staff contacted the owner of the property where Osmanberg stood, discovered his name, and reported the information to law enforcement. On Friday, the letter reads, the school’s staff was alerted that Osmanberg was in custody.
He was charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, a felony, and misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment and harassment.
Dallas said she received three phone calls from concerned parents the day of both incidents. One was in regard to the sound of gunshots and the other two about the second incident. When more information appeared online and in The Chronicle about the incident, the school received fewer than 15 concerned phone calls and Dallas said she received three emails expressing concern.
“We were not timely. … I agree, it was not done in a timely manner and on Friday, something should have gone home that gave some type of information involving the incident,” she said.
The school’s protocol is to send a letter to parents any time troubling events stir up. Dallas said the school is reviewing the situation with law enforcement, the school district’s attorney and with risk management. She said they’re also addressing it with any parent that has contacted the school with concern.
“We feel very fortunate that the outcome was that everybody was secure, everybody was safe, the person involved was apprehended, however … we do want to learn from this, and always refine after every situation. We look at how we can improve our safety, because that first and foremost is important to us,” Dallas said.
Kimsey said Adna schools, like most school districts in rural areas of Lewis County, fall under the sheriff’s office’s jurisdiction. He said any school-related calls are given top priority. When the first call came in Thursday afternoon, Kimsey said deputies consistently responded to the area of the school on the hour until Osmanberg was in custody.
He condemned threatening comments against teachers and students.
“It’s inappropriate and it’s against the law,” he said.
Osmanberg is being held in the Lewis County Jail on $50,000 bail.
