Editor's Note: Charges against Ian Fotheringham were dropped on 9/25/25.

Ian Fotheringham, a Falmouth, Massachusetts teenager accused of threatening a school shooting, could soon be released from jail. 

Fotheringham, 18, was arrested last Thursday. He's charged with threatening to use a deadly weapon in a public building. 

At a hearing Tuesday, a Barnstable District Court judge ruled Fotheringham should not be held without bail. Instead, the teen can go free if he posts $2,500 and wears a GPS monitoring device.

Parents concerned about safety

Fotheringham is expected to post bail on Wednesday. The news is a blow to a group of mothers who sat in court on behalf of their children. 

"We as parents are all now left with the decision of, do we send our children to school tomorrow knowing that their lives could be taken. And that's an impossible situation," said Dianna Wilson, a Falmouth parent. 

Concerns about Fotheringham date back to October 2024, when the former Falmouth High School student allegedly made threats against the school.

Last month, investigators said they were tipped off by mental health counselors that the teen allegedly "wanted to shoot up a school" and that he was refurbishing guns in his room. Falmouth Police searched the room and did not find any illegal guns.

Then, on September 3, safety monitors told police Fotheringham was in the woods behind Teaticket Elementary School in Falmouth and were worried he was casing the building.

The next day, Falmouth Police got a search warrant for the entire home. They said they found photos and a journal that referenced the Columbine High School murders and a large 3D printer that's capable of making a gun. According to court documents, the teen also indicated that he was part of a white supremacy group.

"There are photographs that police indicate were from the dark web showing bloody victims on the ground to include the Columbine killers themselves," said Tom Flanagan, Cape and Islands Assistant District Attorney. 

Fotheringham was arrested on September 11. He was arraigned in Barnstable District Court Friday and was ordered held without bail.

Fotheringham's defense attorney said police never found a weapon, and his family has worked to help him with multiple inpatient stays at mental health facilities. She also argued that the description of the person who allegedly cased the local elementary school did not match her client.

"They did not find any firearms. They did not find a yellow fanny pack. They did not find a gray tank top," defense attorney Krysten Condon said. 

She said Fotheringham has a lifelong illness, cannot drive, and was with his mother that day.

School committee meeting canceled 

Hours later Tuesday night, outraged parents confronted Falmouth School Committee members with police escorting them, after they abruptly canceled a meeting. 

Parents had waited for hours outside the building, yelling to get a school safety plan after a judge ruled Fotheringham could be released on bail. 

"I will not be sending my children to school," said parent Amanda McGonigle. "I will not be sending my children to school, I don't have any trust in this administration." 

"We don't trust the school to keep them safe," Wilson said. 

Superintendent Lori Duerr sent a letter to staff and families Tuesday night, saying for at least the next two weeks Falmouth police will be beefing up security at all the elementary schools, adding, "The wellbeing of our staff and students is always and will always be our District's highest priority." 

Parents said they were upset about the school's handling of the incident. 

"The administration intentionally left our staff and students like sitting ducks in our community," McGonigle said.