Full Notification

<p>One of our posts on social media has been interpreted incorrectly, our post, that clearly states that we take all threats seriously and encouraging people in our community to report suspicious activity to us, has been categorized as an attack on more specific social concerns and a real crisis that consumes every daily interaction between law enforcement and community.&nbsp; The post was to give some insight as to the history of the urban legend and it is not a new occurrence.</p>

<p>This post, absent credible and actionable threats or intelligence, was created to alleviate and calm the behavior of our community.&nbsp; It was to reiterate that there is no actionable or credible intelligence that would require a more comprehensive response at this time.&nbsp; This is not a new phenomenon and the threat of clowns doing harm to the community has been part of urban legend for decades now. There are a very few misguided individuals that made horrible choices to send veiled and non-specific threats from social media accounts to create fear and chaos.&nbsp; Hoaxes and threats with specific information are and have always been investigated to the extent they can be with information provided or developed and are given the appropriate response and dedication of resources based on the level of intelligence provided or developed. None of these have been directly sent to our community.&nbsp; Our department has not been made aware of any threats specific to the City of Red Oak or its school district and we have diligently monitored social media to look for any actionable or credible threats to ensure the safety of our community.&nbsp; This occurred late into the night by several members of the agency, just to be sure.</p>

<p>If an investigation based on actionable and credible facts that resulted in probable cause to obtain warrants revealed that offenses had occurred, then we would pursue it to the full extent of the law.&nbsp; Does the Red Oak Police Department believe that there is a murderous band of clowns roaming the country looking to wreak havoc, no, we do not.&nbsp; Are there a few misguided individuals that have utilized an urban legend to their benefit, absolutely they have.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p>To even associate this post with the real and very impactful movement of Black Lives Matter and the identifiable national concerns with law enforcement and community relations as a whole, on a racial level, is a gross exaggeration and misinterpretation of the post made by our department. Our interactions with our diverse community is of paramount importance for the Red Oak Police Department and to attach such a potentially polarizing concern of police conduct, police use of force and race to this post is equally irresponsible as our post is alleged to be.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Communities have allowed social media and other media sources to sensationalize behavior such as the clown issue and have done little to calm fears and control chaos and have at times exploited those opportunities to create fear and create chaos, not all but some.&nbsp; Our post was simply that we have no credible facts or intelligence that would drive a greater response from our department at this time.&nbsp; We take all complaints seriously and encourage our community to call upon us if they felt it was needed.&nbsp;<br />
There was an attempt at some levity in the post to minimize and alleviate some fear that was gaining traction because of the media and social media play that the clown issue was receiving. Simply put don&rsquo;t let your imagination run away with your thoughts. We need to stay focused on the fact that we have not received any actionable or credible threats that warrant a greater response at this time.&nbsp; The Red Oak Police Department has been fortunate and is humbled that we have a community that trusts us to serve them and be vigilant of their safety for them on such issues.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p>We will continue to monitor this urban legend phenomenon and should the issue of the clowns continue to permeate the mainstream media and social media sites we will evaluate them for credibility and actionable intelligence that may drive a larger and more comprehensive response from our department.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Lastly, the post was not intended to offend anyone or minimize credible or actionable intelligence. It was intended to shed light on a common and exaggerated urban legend that is being exploited by a few to create chaos and fear to the masses. The levity was intended to calm fears, get a chuckle and confirm to the community that we have and will continue to monitor the issues regardless of how utterly silly it may seem too many.&nbsp;</p>

<p>If something changes and the threat increases via actionable intelligence, specific threats or specific actions, the Red Oak Police Department and our partner departments stand ready to deal with the issue at hand.&nbsp; We have dedicated resources that are monitoring this issue as well as other community concerns and are just as dedicated to the safety of our community as we always have been.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Chief Garland Wolf</p>