Commissioner: Cole County bomb threat was delivered by mail

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Cole County Presiding Commissioner Sam Bushman confirmed to ABC 17 News Wednesday that a piece of mail triggered the evacuation of the county courthouse and adjacent annex building a day earlier.

The communication was mailed to the office of presiding Judge Patricia Joyce just before 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Sheriff John Wheeler said his investigators identified the sender but would not release that person's identity.

Video from the Cole County Commission meeting Tuesday shows the moment Bushman was notified of the threat by Sheriff Wheeler.

Both Wheeler and Bushman said the county's response to the threat was handled well, but an examination of the protocols will, nevertheless, take place.

"We'll do an after-action report," said Wheeler. "We'll see what we did good, we'll see what we need to do better on and then, hopefully, when and if this situation happens again, we'll even be better the next time."

Legal experts told ABC 17 News a threat delivered via U.S. Mail could open up the possibility of a federal charge against the sender. As of the publication of this article, no charges have been filed as a result of the threat.