To Our Cape Coral Community,
As your Chief of Police—and as a father with children in our schools—one of my most important responsibilities is ensuring the safety of our students, teachers, and staff. Recent events have understandably raised concerns, and I want to address them directly.
My Public Affairs team has informed me of some confusion and misinformation surrounding the recent arrests related to a school shooting threat. I want to take a moment to clarify the situation and explain the legal decisions made by our department.
I fully understand the fear, frustration, and anger that such disturbing, reckless behavior has caused. The actions of both individuals involved—Karim Hussain and Mario Garth—were alarming and unacceptable. The safety of our schools is non-negotiable, and our response reflects that priority.
Let me begin by explaining Florida Statute 836.10, which governs written or electronic threats to kill, cause bodily harm, or commit acts of mass violence:
836.10 – Written or Electronic Threats to Kill, Do Bodily Injury, or Conduct a Mass Shooting or Act of Terrorism:
It is unlawful for any person to send, post, or transmit—via any form of writing or electronic communication—a threat to kill, cause harm, or carry out a mass shooting or act of terrorism.
The statute is specific: the individual making the threat must also be the one who posts or transmits it in a way that others can view.
In this case, Mario Garth recorded and shared the threat via social media. His actions clearly meet the criteria outlined in the statute, and that is why he was arrested under Florida Statute 836.10.
Karim Hussain, however, although he made the abhorrent and offensive statements, did not transmit them himself. As such, under current law, he could not be charged under that statute. Any attempt to do so would have resulted in an unlawful arrest—ultimately an immediate dismissal of the case and risking public funds in a legal challenge. This was also the opinion of the State Attorney’s Office.
That said, we did not let his actions go unchecked. His words allowed us to petition the court for a Risk Protection Order—Florida’s version of the “Red Flag Law”—which enabled us to lawfully remove firearms from his possession. His excuse that it was “dark humor” or for “shock value” is unacceptable. Mass violence is never a joke. Our entire Southwest Florida law enforcement community, including the State Attorney’s Office, takes these matters extremely seriously.
Further, because his statements caused many parents to keep their children home from school on April 17th, we were able to charge him with Disruption of a School Function—a misdemeanor, but the only lawful criminal charge available in this situation.
Many have asked why similar arrests under 836.10 have been made in other cases, but not in this one. The answer lies in the legal elements: in those cases, the individual who made the threat was also the one who posted or transmitted it. That key element was not present here.
What happens next?
We are working closely with the State Attorney’s Office to ensure both individuals are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
I have spoken with State Representative Mike Giallombardo about introducing legislation to close this gap in the law. He is committed to working with us and our law enforcement partners to strengthen this statute and ensure that future cases like this do not fall through the cracks.
In closing, I want you to know that your concerns have been heard—and are shared by all of us. This law, while well-intentioned, needs to evolve to match the realities we face. Fortunately, we are represented by good people in Tallahassee who are ready to make that happen alongside us.
Thank you for your continued trust and support. Have a safe and peaceful Easter weekend.
Sincerely,
Anthony Sizemore
Chief of Police
Cape Coral Police Department