Lakeland locks down - again

RATHDRUM — Four schools in the Lakeland Joint School District went into lockdown mode Wednesday morning after an elementary student reported seeing a man with a gun in the wooded area behind Lakeland High School.

The lockdown for Lakeland and Mountain View high schools, Lakeland Junior High and John Brown Elementary went into effect at 9:06 a.m. and was lifted at 9:19 a.m. after police responded and found no one with a gun in the vicinity.

Superintendent Becky Meyer said a John Brown Elementary student reported seeing the man while walking to school.

"Units investigated, combed the area, deemed it safe and secure, and we discontinued the lockout," she said.

Meyer said she asked D.J. Duke, the school resource officer, if he believed the report was legitimate. He told her he believed it was.

"I did not want to needlessly alarm any parents again today," Meyer said. "That's why I asked him that very question."

Schools were locked down Tuesday afternoon due to a social media message with a gun photo suggesting two men in a dispute meet at Seltice Elementary.

Post Falls alarm

The person of interest in the Post Falls case was questioned, but no crime was found by investigators. The 19-year-old Post Falls man responded to the police department when asked to do so by police. Police said there was no threat to students or staff and the two men never met at Seltice Elementary.

The Post Falls investigation followed last week's tragedy in which a Freeman High School student allegedly opened fire at his school in Washington, killing a classmate and injuring three others before being arrested.

Most school districts, including Lakeland and Coeur d'Alene, implement various levels of crisis response plans per the direction of law enforcement, depending on the situation.

Cd’A response

On Tuesday, Coeur d'Alene schools implemented a "shelter in place" response, said Justin Fine, the district's safety and security coordinator.

During such a response, all students and staff outside the school building are brought inside. All activities inside the school function as normal. The perimeter doors of schools in the district are always locked with the exception of pickup/drop off times, and visitors must go through an access system to enter buildings.

Situational examples that prompt such a response include incidents that have occurred within close proximity of the school or neighboring communities, severe weather warnings and pending natural disasters.

A shelter in place allows for the quick transition to a lockdown if the threat or risk escalates.

Lockdown defined

Lakeland and some Post Falls schools, meanwhile, went into lockdown mode during the Post Falls investigation. Meyer said district officials heard the person of interest could be in front of one of their schools, so that's why lockdowns were ordered by the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office as a precaution.

Lockdowns occur when an imminent, existing or active threat has been identified for a school or schools. During a lockdown, all measures to keep students safe from harm, including locked classrooms, lights shut off and no instruction, are implemented.

"It's the highest stage for protecting our students," Fine said.

Police decide

Fine said schools follow the direction of police on what type of response to implement. Evacuation plans also exist.

"The school-resource officer program is so far ahead of the information curve (during critical incidents) that they're the ones to say whatever state we should be in," Fine said. "It's a great partnership."

Fine and Post Falls Superintendent Jerry Keane said the districts will review how the response procedures went for schools involved and see what improvements can be made.

"We continue to review and analyze our lockdown procedures both internally and externally to ensure they are as effective as possible," Keane said.

Guns in focus

Meyer said it's unfortunate school incidents involving guns have risen to this point nationwide.

"It's sad for us as a district and educators that we have to deal with this when really we just want to be teaching kids on a daily basis," she said. "It detracts from the mission. I'm not sure what the solution is, but safety has to be the No. 1 priority so students feel safe in an environment to learn."

Meyer said circumstances such as Idaho being an open-carry state with firearms can sometimes add to the complexity of ever-increasing heightened school alerts, especially if guns are reported to be seen near schools.

"What's the line between our schools being potentially in harm's way and respecting people's Constitutional rights?" she said, adding it's unknown what the man on Wednesday was doing with the reported firearm because he was never found.

Last November, Lakeland schools in Rathdrum and the district's maintenance and transportation facilities were locked down due to the report of a man with a rifle. However, it was later revealed the man, who was not found by deputies, was outside city limits.

"I was lambasted (for ordering the lockdowns) — told to go back to California even though I'm not from there — but as superintendent I'm never going to go against what law enforcement recommends or requests for the safety of our kids no matter what my belief is," Meyer said. "I have to trust law enforcement to make those decisions."

Meyer, who has a doctorate in psychology, said incidents such as those in Freeman can affect students and adults in ways they're unaware of. That's why she asked staff to be on alert for anyone with emotional distress.

"People may not even be consciously aware of the trauma," she said. "It can bring up grief, fear and anxiety inside you that you didn't even know was hidden."

The trauma can, in turn, have a ripple effect in the classroom, she said.

"Unless people feel safe and secure in their environment, their brain can't open for learning," she said.