Midlands high school student threatened to ‘shoot up’ school bus, cops say

Lexington County sheriff’s deputies have charged an 18-year-old Swansea High School student with threatening to “shoot up” a school bus.

Steven Isaac Smith is being held at the Lexington County Detention Center after being arrested at the high school on Thursday.

Deputies say Smith made threats to other students on his school bus earlier this week, making “verbal threats to take the lives of others and inflict bodily harm upon another person,” according to an arrest warrant.

Smith allegedly told students he wanted to “shoot this bus up” on Tuesday, deputies say.

Another student reported the comment to their parents, who contacted the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, according to a news release from Lexington District 4.

Smith was awaiting a bond hearing early Friday morning, deputies say. He was also suspended from school pending a district hearing, the school district said.

This story was originally published October 18, 2019 at 9:02 AM.

Bristow Marchant

The State

803-771-8405

Bristow Marchant covers local government, schools and community in Lexington County for The State. He graduated from the College of Charleston in 2007. He has almost 20 years of experience covering South Carolina at the Clinton Chronicle, Sumter Item and Rock Hill Herald. He joined The State in 2016. Bristow has won numerous awards, most recently the S.C. Press Association’s 2024 education reporting award.  Support my work with a digital subscription