Phone Call Claiming 2 People Shot At Westfield High School Found To Be False: Police

WESTFIELD, NJ — An emergency lockdown at Westfield High School has been lifted following a "malicious telephone call" on Monday morning.

At around 9:53 a.m., Westfield High School reported that it received a single telephone call from an unidentified person reporting that two people had been shot inside the school, said Westfield Police Chief Christopher Battiloro.

The Westfield High School immediately contacted the Westfield Police Department and placed itself into a lockdown pending a police response.

"Students/staff are in an emergency lockdown, as law enforcement investigates a malicious telephone call made to the school. PLEASE DO NOT TELEPHONE OR COME TO THE SCHOOL," according to an alert from Westfield High School.

All Westfield duty patrol officers and detectives went to the school and the roadways around the school were closed.

Teams of officers entered the school building and methodically searched the entire premises, said Battiloro.

The report of people shot was unfounded, said Battiloro.

Around 10:30 a.m., the district lifted the lockdown and transitioned to a shelter-in-place.

"All students and staff are safe. Law enforcement has swept the building and has lifted the lockdown," wrote the district in an alert. "As a precautionary measure, students/ staff have transitioned to a Shelter-in-Place to resume instruction in their classrooms while keeping the hallways clear."

Around 10:50 a.m., the shelter-in-place was lifted."Students and staff have resumed their regular schedules. Thank you for your patience & cooperation as we worked to resolve this emergency," wrote the district.

"There is no concern for the safety and security of the school, its students and/or staff, and normal school activities have resumed," said Battiloro.

The phone call reporting this shooting did not originate from inside the school and was ultimately determined to be maliciously false, said Battiloro.

The Westfield Police Department will continue to investigate this incident. The Westfield Fire Department and Westfield Rescue Squad, as well as representatives of the Union County Prosecutor’s Office also responded.

"The students and staff at Westfield High School should be commended for the way they conducted themselves as officers conducted their on-scene investigation," said Battiloro.

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