PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. – After deputies announced that three 14-year-olds were responsible for causing an estimated $100,000 in damage to the now-closed Jenkins Middle School campus in Palatka, community members in Putnam County responded with outrage this week.
According to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office the teens burglarized the campus on Sunday, trashing classrooms, flipping trash cans, breaking windows, damaging toilets and sinks, discharging 17 fire extinguishers, painting walls, and causing other damage.
A release said the Palatka Fire Department responded to a call of smoke near the middle school campus around 4 p.m. on Sunday. When they arrived, they saw three teenagers running from the area.
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Deputies and Palatka Police officers arrived and found extensive damage to most of the buildings, including the city-owned gym.
That gym is still used for youth programs, and people who live in the community took to social media, calling the vandalism “an atrocity.”
“Prior to being destroyed, security cameras caught the destruction on camera and due to the approximate age of those in the video, stills were taken to Palatka Junior-Senior High School where one of the youth resource deputies was able to positively identify the individuals,” the release said. “While the campus is equipped with an alarm system, the alarms did not trigger during the incident.”
Pictures released by the Sheriff’s Office show the extent of the damage, which left the community outraged.
One person on Facebook said in part: “This infuriates me but also makes me sad! Shows a complete lack of respect for others and their property.”
Another comment reads: “Make them pay for their own destruction and vandalism. Make them accountable for their actions.”
Another comment said: “The parents, not the taxpayers should clean this up.”
The juveniles were charged with first-degree felony burglary with more than $1,000 in damages, third-degree felony criminal mischief and third-degree preventing or obstructing extinguishment of a fire by interfering with the fire extinguishers.
The three teenagers are all 14 years old.
Damage to the gym portion of the campus is being investigated as a separate case.
The closure of Jenkins Middle School happened last year. The district said the closure is part of a long-term plan to revitalize the district. Click here to read more.