JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — The Jefferson County sheriff is pushing for change in the wake of the Evergreen High School shooting when it comes to getting information from social media companies.
Sheriff Reggie Marinelli says these companies have a very long grace period to give law enforcement important information about users who make online threats.
She said the FBI filed several warrants over the summer seeking details about an unknown social media user who was discussing plans for a mass shooting. But she said investigators did not have the information needed to identify a suspect before the shooting at Evergreen High School.
“The FBI did everything right. They did everything as quickly as possible. The information did not arrive in time,” Marinelli said.
A report from the Anti-Defamation League found that the Evergreen shooter was active in a violent online forum months before he opened fire at Evergreen High School on Sept. 10, wounding two classmates before killing himself.
Marinelli confirmed the Anti-Defamation League’s report, which showed the gunman was obsessed with previous school shootings. He also posted a video on TikTok showing tactical gear and a photo of a gun on X. At the time, authorities had no idea who he was or where he was.
“The complaint we received regarding the Evergreen shooting came through New York, so it wasn’t anywhere near Colorado,” Marinelli said.
After an online threat is reported, Marinelli says the process of obtaining user information often begins with a warrant to obtain an IP address. Colorado allows social media companies 35 days to respond to those memos.
Once that IP address is received, Marinelli says police will then serve a second warrant to obtain more detailed information, triggering another 35-day response window.
Marinelli said the process often requires two or three warrants before authorities can obtain an email address.
“At that time, you just hope that the email address is connected to a real name and a real address and gives you that information,” she said.
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Marinelli is now calling for legislative changes at the state and federal levels that would require social media companies to respond to warrants within 24 hours when there is a threat.
“Part of me wonders if we can save the shooter on September 10 from himself, but we will never have that opportunity to find out,” she said. “But we could certainly save a lot of lives and a lot of injuries in the future if we were to speed up this process.”
Al-Sharif said she is working with members of Colorado’s congressional delegation to push for change and hopes the efforts will lead to nationwide reform.