New York City schools dismissed the same threat that shut down L.A. because it contained a grammatical error

NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton
(Image credit: Michael Graae/Getty Images)

New York City schools were reportedly targeted by the same electronic terror threat that closed schools in Los Angeles on Tuesday, although according to the police the threat was not credible and is being investigated as a hoax, CBS reports. NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton confirmed that the email was similar to the one received by the Los Angeles Unified School District, and that it is being looked into by the FBI.

Bratton said one reason authorities believed the email was a hoax was because the word Allah was not capitalized: "The language in the email would lead us to believe that this is not a jihadist initiative... That would be incredible to think that any jihadist would not spell Allah with a capital 'A.'"

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.