ROY -- Friday at Roy High School ended pretty normally for a day that began with three security-trained sniffer dogs nosing students' backpacks.
The day continued with classroom doors locked during classes, and all exterior doors except the front locked and posted with signs that directed visitors to the office.
Then there were the patrolling Roy police officers, three to five at different times during the day. Teachers and administrators also were on high alert for anything that seemed unusual or threatening.
"The dogs didn't hit on a single thing," Police Sgt. Rick Morgan said Friday afternoon. "We had limited access and an increased officer presence, but otherwise it was business as usual. Absolutely nothing happened."
The extra precautions followed the Thursday morning discovery of vandalism in two girls' bathrooms. Someone used a black marker to scrawl threatening messages on walls and stalls, said Nate Taggart, Weber School District spokesmen. Multiple students also reported the message included Friday's date, 11-11-11.
"I heard it said, 'I'm going to kill her, on 11-11-11 I'm going to kill everyone at Roy High,' " said Tori Froslie, 15.
Tori's mother, Sharon Gregory, said she took the threat seriously.
"I'm from California, and there are threats in California that really come true," she said. Gregory lives near the school and had Veterans Day off, so she spent the day ready to pick up her daughter if trouble developed.
Roy High's principal and assistant principal did not return calls from the Standard-Examiner on Thursday or Friday.
One student told the Standard-Examiner that students had been advised not to talk to the news media.
A parent told a Standard-Examiner editor she kept her child home from the high school because of the threat.
"Quite a few people were gone," said student Brandon Buckingham, 16. "I wasn't worried, but I guess a lot of people were."
Taggart said of Roy High's 1,539 students, 304 were absent Friday, an increase of 118 absences from the previous Friday.
"The federal holiday and the state playoff games would have some impact as well," Taggart said.
Vernell Woods, of Sunset, said he was worried Friday when he dropped off his daughter at Roy High.
"My daughter told me there were threats about guns and bloodshed, and we talked about it," Woods said. "She wanted to go to school. I don't think I will be worried to send her Monday. I think the lockdown helped."
Manuelita Martinez, of Roy, had the same conversation with her daughter.
"She seemed OK with going, and with the lockdown," Martinez said. "She took a bottle of water since she would not be able to go to the fountain for a drink."
Morgan said the lockdown was minor compared to what it could have been, and he doubts the low-level lockdowns will continue next week, although at least one police officer is always scheduled to be present at the school.
"We are always very aware of what is going on at Roy High," he said. "You just don't always notice us doing our job."
Thursday's vandalism -- which prompted a classroom lockdown and student locker search -- followed a similar incident on Sept. 20 at Roy Junior High School, in which trees and exterior walls and windows were painted with vague threats. Taggart speculated the Roy High incident may have been copycat vandalism, but said the district took action because it takes every threat seriously.
Taggart said footage from security cameras in the high school hallways will be examined in hopes of identifying people who entered the girls bathrooms between the start of school and when the vandalism was reported to the office by a student.
Anyone with information about the identity of the Roy Junior High or the Roy High School vandal is asked to call the school at 801-476-3600 or the Roy Police 801-774-1063. A $100 reward is offered in each case.
Morgan said students reported on Friday that a man in a van approached them several blocks west of the school, near the train tracks at 4800 South and about 2700 West, and brandished a gun. No one was injured and Morgan said the incident did not appear to be related to the Thursday vandalism.
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