Authorities charge 2 teenage boys in Farrell, Reynolds bomb threats

MERCER, Pa. -- Authorities have identified two teenage boys accused of making bomb threats at Farrell and Reynolds high schools.
The two, Omar McCurdy, 17, of Hamilton Avenue, Farrell, and Phillip Moore, 16, of West Salem Township, had juvenile detention hearings Friday before common pleas Judge John C. Reed. Judge Reed ordered both boys held in juvenile detention facilities pending adjudication hearings, which will be scheduled within 10 days, said James Epstein, Mercer County district attorney.
Adjudication hearings are the equivalent of nonjury trials for adults. If they are judged to be delinquent, they will face sentencing in a disposition hearing, Epstein said.
McCurdy is accused of writing a bomb threat that resulted in the evacuation of the Farrell school complex Oct. 20. Moore is charged with writing a bomb threat on a restroom wall at Reynolds on Oct. 25.
At least five Mercer County school districts have experienced one or more bomb threats over the past month. Some have had three and four threats.
Law enforcement officials at one point announced a "get-tough" policy for offenders found responsible for making those threats.