I am totally sending this to US News and World Report

I wonder if they have a “terrorist threat level” as a part of the ranking criteria

From SFGate

UC Berkeley law student made threat against Hastings, officials say

Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Staff Writer

Friday, April 20, 2007

(04-20) 07:56 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- The person whose threats of violence shuttered Hastings College of the Law on Wednesday was a student at UC Berkeley's Boalt Hall School of Law, according to officials at both schools.

Investigators determined the threat to be a hoax, Boalt Hall Dean Christopher Edley said in a letter sent Thursday to Hastings Dean Nell Newton.

The FBI and San Francisco Police Department determined that the suspect "does not pose a risk to others," Edley wrote, and continue to "investigate whether criminal charges are appropriate."

Regardless of the criminal investigation, Edley said, the school will consider disciplinary proceedings against the student.

The letter was forwarded to Hastings students, faculty and staff, accompanied by a note from Newton assuring the campus that the incident is believed to be over.

Hastings, located in downtown San Francisco, was evacuated and shut down Wednesday afternoon after a "copycat" threat of violence was posted on an Internet discussion board, school officials said.

The threat was posted on a law school admissions discussion board, www.autoadmit.com, according an e-mail sent to the Web site's users by founder Jarret Cohen.

The message was headed, "Just decided not to do a murder-suicide copycat at Hastings Law" and was authored by a user called "Trustafarian," who went on to write, "I went to bed all set for 'Bloody Wednesday,' but when I woke -- to sun, to flowers in bloom -- I just couldn't bring myself to suit up. Maybe tomorrow; I hear rain's in the forecast."

The threat was reminiscent of Monday's massacre at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., which left 33 people dead, including the shooter, a student.

Hastings officials closed the law school Wednesday after being made aware of the threat and increased security in the wake of the incident, according to Newton. The heightened security will remain in effect through the end of the school year, she wrote in the e-mail to students.

In Edley's e-mail to Newton, he expressed his "deep regret and sympathy," to the Hastings community for "the anxiety and upset," created by the posting.

"Coming on the heels of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, the posting was in my judgment at the very best an astounding instance of immaturity, terrible judgment, and reckless disregard for the welfare of others," he wrote. "Quickly on the heels of (the criminal investigation) and regardless of its outcome, we at Boalt will consider what disciplinary proceedings might be appropriate. Of course, we are also consulting with mental health professionals."

In his note, written "on behalf of AutoAdmit," Cohen said that he had put the FBI in contact with the person allegedly responsible for making the threat. He asked for ideas from users for how to deal with similar situations in the future.

"Please understand that I run this place the way I do because I belive you deserve the chance to express yourselves openly and freely. But please, don't be stupid," he wrote.

E-mail Marisa Lagos at mlagos@sfchronicle.com.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/20/BAGEHPCJCP6.DTL