KENOSHA, Wis. — Parents across the Kenosha Unified School District were met Tuesday morning by an unusually heavy police presence, with squads positioned outside nearly every school building, as the city responded to widespread concern over a school shooting threat tied to Donavon Castillo, a 15-year-old from the 6700 block of 30th Avenue. Also noticed, was an extremely low attendance at schools.

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Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton confirmed to Kenosha County Eye that the department treated Tuesday as an all-hands-on-deck day, assigning officers and detectives directly to schools throughout the district, pulling personnel from investigative bureaus to increase visibility and address public concern following days of conflicting and incomplete information about the alleged threat.

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According to Patton, the surge was intended to reassure parents, students, and staff while questions remained unresolved. He also confirmed that the juvenile at the center of the threat — whom police cannot publicly name but whom Kenosha County Eye has identified as Castillo — was turned over to juvenile intake Monday night. Once that transfer occurs, Patton explained, law enforcement no longer has authority over or insight into custodial decisions, which move entirely into the juvenile court system.

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When asked whether Kenosha police could continue maintaining officers outside every school throughout the day or on an ongoing basis, Patton said such a deployment is unsustainable, citing staffing limits and the significant cost it would impose on the department.

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The comments underscore a key reality for parents: the extraordinary police presence seen Tuesday morning was temporary, not a permanent safeguard.

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Meanwhile, Kenosha County Eye contacted Assistant District Attorney Tricia Riley, who is the Juvenile prosecutor, seeking confirmation of Castillo’s custodial status. Riley refused to provide any information, reiterating her position that the public does not need — and should not — know the custodial status of juveniles, even in cases involving credible threats of mass violence. Riley’s response was hostile in tone and included language discouraging any disclosure.

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As a result, no one in authority is publicly confirming where Donavon Castillo is right now. The only entity that can definitively say whether he is in custody is the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office, and it is not disclosing his location. No other official — including Superintendent Jeff Weiss or the Kenosha Police Department — is in a position to say with certainty where Castillo is, because they simply do not know. Kenosha County Eye does not know either.

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That distinction matters. Earlier statements suggesting certainty about Castillo’s detention status are not supported by how the juvenile justice system actually operates, where custody decisions are confidential and controlled by juvenile intake and the district attorney’s office.

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Kenosha has faced similar transparency gaps before. In the case of Jaheem Wright, who brought a loaded gun to Indian Trail High School and threatened a shooting, the matter remained in juvenile court and largely out of public view. The same secrecy surrounded Cedric Bender, the juvenile accused of setting multiple vehicles on fire across Kenosha. Those cases eroded public trust and left parents wary of official reassurances that later proved incomplete.

For families deciding what to do, the difference between “was detained” and “is still detained” is not semantics. It is the difference between confidence and doubt.

Despite the visible police presence and repeated assurances, there is no public confirmation whether Donavon Castillo is in juvenile detention, on a Chapter 51 mental health hold, or potentially released. Juvenile intake decisions are confidential, and any court action occurs behind closed doors.

That uncertainty has fueled frustration among parents, many of whom told Kenosha County Eye they chose to keep their children home specifically because no one could say with certainty where the suspect was.

As of publication, Castillo’s custodial status remains unknown to the public, and the DA’s office has given no indication that will change. Kenosha County Eye will continue pressing for clarity and report any new information as it becomes available.