School threat investigated on 'Live PD' in Fort Bend County

FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas – Television viewers followed along on the A&E Network show “Live PD” Saturday night as Fort Bend County sheriff’s deputies checked out a school shooting threat.

The show indicated the threat was made using the identity of someone living in Fort Bend County.

Deputies tracked down the woman whose identity was being used and questioned the 18-year-old student.

On the program, one deputy said, "The picture they have posted ... that the person posted ... on this MeetMe account is you."

Before deputies could figure out if she was involved, her face was broadcast across the country. It was a police investigation in real time.

Dr. Lucas Logan, an assistant professor of communication at the University of Houston Downtown, said, "You have this spur-of-the-moment thing that's going on with people who are not necessarily prepared for what they are going to get into and once their images are on TV, and in this case, mistakenly so, that is something that can follow them around."

On Sunday, the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office tweeted, “The investigation seen on Live PD last night did not involve any schools in our area. We conducted the investigation based on information received from an agency in another part of Texas. A social media profile was created in which they used the picture of a resident in our area. It was determined the account was fake and our resident was not involved. We appreciate her cooperation sorting it out. We know some had questions about how the situation ended. Enjoy the rainy day!”