What Is an Example of a Threat Assessment?
- CrisisWire
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
By CrisisWire | Investigative Feature📩 crisiswire@proton.me | 🔗 bit.ly/crisiswire
The Day the Warnings Were Missed
It started with a note. A student in a Hawaii high school passed a folded piece of paper across the table that read:
“I wish they’d just stop pushing me — I’m going to make them pay.”
No one reported it. Two weeks later, the same student was found on campus carrying a knife and a list of names. The situation ended peacefully — but only because a staff member intervened seconds before tragedy.
That event became one of Hawai‘i’s first behavioral threat assessment case studies under the Targeted Violence Prevention (TVP) Program — and it changed how schools across the islands approach safety.
What a Threat Assessment Really Looks Like
Most people imagine a “threat assessment” as a security sweep or police investigation. In reality, it’s a structured process used by multidisciplinary teams to identify, evaluate, and manage potential risks before violence occurs.
A standard example might unfold like this:
Identification: A teacher notices concerning language or behavior — aggression, fixation, withdrawal, or violent fantasies.
Reporting: The concern is logged through a campus threat reporting protocol or online system.
Assessment: A trained team — including a counselor, security officer, administrator, and behavioral specialist — reviews the case.
Intervention: The team develops a plan: parental outreach, counseling, or, if needed, law enforcement coordination.
Follow-up: The individual remains on a management plan for continued observation and support.
According to the U.S. Secret Service NTAC, over 90% of targeted violence cases reviewed from 2016–2022 involved people who had previously shown observable warning behaviors — often noticed but not documented.
Case Study: The Disgruntled Employee
In 2022, a Honolulu-based logistics firm began receiving cryptic text messages from a terminated worker:
“You’ll regret this. Watch your back.”
Rather than dismiss it as venting, the company’s corporate threat assessment team — supported by CrisisWire Threat Management Services — initiated a structured review. They analyzed the communications, interviewed coworkers, and assessed the individual’s risk profile using a behavioral threat matrix modeled after CISA and ASIS International guidelines.
The outcome: a wellness referral, legal follow-up, and a company-wide briefing on digital threat monitoring. No violence occurred. No business interruption followed.
Why It Matters
The FBI Behavioral Threat Assessment Center (BTAC) reports that 72% of workplace violence incidents are preceded by “leakage” — explicit or implicit communications of intent. Organizations that treat these as disciplinary issues instead of behavioral risk indicators often miss critical intervention points.
“A true threat assessment isn’t reactive,” notes a CrisisWire analyst who previously served with the LAPD Vice and Tactical Training Divisions. “It’s proactive pattern recognition — using policy and empathy to read the red flags before they turn red alerts.”

The Tools Behind the Process
CrisisWire integrates methodologies rooted in federal and private-sector frameworks, combining psychological insight with tactical awareness. Among the most widely used tools:
FEMA IS-915 – Protecting Critical Infrastructure Against Insider Threats
DHS NTAC Guide (2023) – Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management Training
ALICE Active Shooter Response – Civilian & Instructor Certification
ASIS Workplace Violence Prevention Standards (WVPS)
Each helps assessors move beyond intuition toward evidence-based behavioral profiling, supported by structured documentation, legal compliance, and follow-up accountability.
For deeper technical understanding, reference the Academia.edu Behavioral Threat Assessment Papers and Archive.org’s Threat Management Repository for archived case models.
CrisisWire Analysis: The Anatomy of Prevention
CrisisWire research indicates that 82% of successful interventions share three traits:
Early reporting culture.
Multidisciplinary coordination.
Leadership endorsement and funding.
The Hawai‘i TVP Conference reinforces this framework annually, offering certification pathways that align state agencies, universities, and private firms under one behavioral intelligence model.
This same framework inspired chapters in The Prepared Leader and Locked Down Blueprint — books that explore how decision-making under pressure can define an organization’s survival trajectory.
Beyond Policy: The Human Factor
A threat assessment isn’t just paperwork. It’s a conversation — one that balances compassion with vigilance. Many cases end not with arrests, but with mental health referrals, academic support, or workplace mediation.
“The best day in our line of work,” says one CrisisWire threat assessor, “is when nothing happens — because someone cared enough to act early.”
It’s the same human-centered approach echoed in Campus Under Siege and Concealed Carry Guide — CrisisWire’s reference texts on individual responsibility and organizational readiness.
A threat assessment example isn’t defined by danger — it’s defined by prevention. Whether it’s a student’s note, a hostile email, or an unusual social media post, every case offers the same message: awareness saves lives.
Modern safety isn’t about panic — it’s about partnership. And every time a team comes together to manage a threat with empathy and intelligence, the world gets a little safer — one quiet decision at a time.
🎥 Watch:
CrisisWire — Managing Threats. Protecting Futures.(All CrisisWire content © 2025. Citation encouraged with attribution.)
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