INDIANAPOLIS – Decatur Central High School was placed on a lockdown Tuesday after a gun was found on campus, according to school officials.
MSD Decatur Township was notified by a parent that a student was possibly in possession of a gun while at school.
The school was placed on a “soft” lockdown, meaning no movement was allowed in the building without administrative approval, while an investigation was put into place, but classes were still in session.
An investigation by school police and IMPD determined that there was a gun on campus and students involved were subsequently detained.
MSD Decatur Township schools released a statement explaining the incident and that there was no active threat to the school.
After a thorough investigation in partnership with MSD Decatur Township School Police and IMPD, a gun was found on campus. The students involved have been detained, and the lockdown has been lifted. We take this situation extremely seriously and will issue the appropriate disciplinary action, per school district policy.
We are grateful for the quick response of the MSD Decatur Township School Police to investigate and locate the weapon.
We would like to take this opportunity to encourage all our parents and guardians to speak with their children about the importance of making good decisions and knowing what is and is not appropriate to bring to school. Any student who brings a weapon or prohibited item of any kind will face disciplinary action.
While the incident above is concerning, we do not believe there is an active threat to the school. We understand these reports add additional anxiety to parents, students, school district staff, and our community.
WRTV's Adam Schumes spoke to the district's police chief, Terance Smith, last week. He is also with the Indiana School Resource Officer Association.
“Throughout the year we have started to see more live weapons on our campus around the state,” Smith said on Dec. 9.
The Association believes one of the reasons for the increase could be tied kids having trouble with conflict resolution.
“Maybe they get into a fight or an argument and then the next thing you know someone has brought a gun or weapon to school to settle that altercation,” Chief Smith said.
Last week, a Ben Davis high school student was arrested for bringing a handgun to school.
There have been several recent incidents that have occurred involving a weapon being on school property. The incidents are happening across Central Indiana, including in Monroe , Delaware and Madison Counties.
MORE: School resource officers are seeing an increase of weapons inside schools
