Crime & Safety

Student With Toy Gun Prompted Las Positas Community College Lockdown: Police

Police said a student with a toy gun intended to be used as a prop prompted the precautionary lockdown and police response.

LIVERMORE, CA — A lockdown at Las Positas Community College in Livermore has been lifted this afternoon. Police said a student with a toy gun intended to be used as a prop prompted the precautionary lockdown.

"The student had no intention of disrupting the school or causing fear," police said.

The student, 20, will not be facing any charges as a result of the campus incident, police officials said.

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“A faculty member saw what they believed to be a firearm in a student's backpack and alerted campus security who immediately locked down the campus and contacted LPD,” police said. “LPD was able to work with campus security to locate the student and verify it was not a firearm that was on campus. The student brought the Nerf gun onto campus as a prop for an event and had no intention of causing any disruption on campus.”

The college sent a text to students at the college at 10:58 a.m. that said, "Shelter in place. This is a message from the Las Positas Community College emergency alert system. Emergency situation. Remain where you are and shelter in place until further notice.”

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Those who were not on campus were asked to avoid the area. Police and school officials held a press conference once the lockdown was lifted and said the student made a "bad decision" by bringing the toy onto campus.

"The Livermore Police Department has trained at Las Positas College on numerous occasions in regard to active shooter incidents," police said in a statement. "This training has included members of Campus Safety. The Livermore Police Department would like to praise the students, faculty, and Campus Safety officers for how they reacted to this incident, followed protocols, and remained calm during the investigation."

In the wake of the recent Las Vegas shooting, police encourage people to report all suspicious behavior immediately.

"The Livermore Police Department is proud of the faculty member who alerted Campus Safety after observing what he believed to be a rifle in possession of a person on campus," police said. "The department would like to remind all of our community members to report all suspicious activity that is observed.

Las Positas Community College is located at 3000 Campus Hill Drive in Livermore.

Photo courtesy Cirin Cassarino

Photo via Shutterstock

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