The head of the Columbus Fraternal Order of Police is calling out a Columbus City Schools principal for seemingly denying officers entrance to a school when they believed there was a bomb threat.
Body camera footage shows two apparently frustrated police officers inside the front office at Ridgeview Middle School speaking to a secretary and school principal Natalie James.
“If we have an emergency at the school, I should not have to explain to this woman why I'm here. I don't come here for party time,” one officer said.
The school called officers on March 17 after a student made a bomb threat. The threat was determined to be a hoax before officers arrived at the school.
The secretary and James cited district policy for not allowing the officers into the building.
James sent a letter dated March 17 to students' families that said in part:
"The safety and well-being of our students and staff remains our top priority. We want to inform you of an incident that occurred today which temporarily impacted our school environment. Today, one of our scholars made a threatening remark during a classroom interaction. Due to the nature of the threat, Columbus Division of Police did respond. Disciplinary action was taken with the student. Our administration has conducted an investigation and determined that this student is not an immediate threat to our building or other students. As a precaution, our District Safety and Security team will be closely monitoring the situation alongside our building administrators and staff for the coming days."
District Superintendent Angela Chapman sent a message to staff in January that said “uninvited individuals, including law enforcement,” are not allowed into buildings without warrants. That message references Immigration and Customs Enforcement and seems to be in response to changes to federal immigration enforcement policies that were happening at the time.
But Brian Steel, president of FOP of Capital City Lodge 9, claims police officers have had problems getting into Ridgeview Middle School for years. He said impeding police officers on official business is dangerous.
“The safety of the students and the staff is the priority. Effective public safety response depends on cooperative relationships between law enforcement and schools,” Steel said.
During the interaction with police, body camera footage shows James saying that she did not feel safe. Officers accused James of hating the police.
Steel said he’s confident that Chapman and Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant will handle the situation.
Columbus City Schools responded to WOSU's request for comment with the following statement:
"Columbus City Schools and the Columbus Division of Police have reviewed video of the interactions between school staff and a CPD Officer at Ridgeview Middle School on March 17, 2025. CCS Principals and CPD Officers are both trained in de-escalation procedures and serve to treat all Columbus residents with respect, dignity, and fairness. CCS Employee Relations is reviewing the incident on behalf of CCS, and the Department of the Inspector General is reviewing on behalf of CPD."
