The Blount County Sheriff's Office reported that a 16-year-old female William Blount student was arrested Thursday and charged with delinquency by false report.

On Thursday afternoon, the sheriff's office said that the 16-year-old female at William Blount High School admitted to writing a "hit list" with the first names of eight students located on a wall of one of the restrooms on the second floor.

Officials said she was being held at Blount County Juvenile Center Thursday pending a detention hearing release.

“These threats must stop,” Sheriff Berrong said. “We take each and every threat of this nature seriously, and we investigate each incident thoroughly, sometimes several hours. We also prosecute each event to the fullest extent of the law. We send a large number of resources to these incidents, which takes deputies away from their patrol zones where they are needed, and in turn causes longer response times when people truly need our assistance.”