A past Atascadero Middle School teacher arrested last month on suspicion of threatening school district employees is due back in court later this month.
The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office filed five felony criminal threats charges against James Klink on Jan. 20.
The criminal complaint states the 56-year-old “did willfully and unlawfully threaten to commit a crime which would result in death or great bodily injury” to three different people, who, according to the Atascadero Unified School District’s website, are the principal and assistant principals at the middle school.
The threats are alleged to have occurred between Jan. 13 and 16 of this year.
Atascadero police reportedly worked with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to take James Klink into custody. He was reportedly no longer living in the Atascadero area at the time of his arrest.
According to San Luis Obispo County Jail records, Klink was booked into the jail on January 17. He remained in custody as of Thursday afternoon.
Atascadero Unified Superintendent Tom Butler sent a letter out to families Tuesday regarding the arrest.
He said the former teacher has not been on campus since Sept. 2, 2022, and that the school district is "taking all appropriate personnel actions regarding the employee... In addition, the school district immediately and actively partnered with law enforcement to make sure our students and staff are safe."
Anyone with further information about this case is urged to contact the Atascadero Police Department at (805) 461-5051.
Klink is due back in court Feb. 21 during a hearing to receive a doctor’s report. It was not immediately known whether he had entered a plea.
