Sweet Home High School was locked down Friday morning, May 15, after school staff reported to police that a student may have brought a firearm onto campus.
According to Sweet Home police, the incident began about 8 a.m. Officer responded to the school, which was placed on lockdown.
Officers and staff were able to locate the juvenile in class, but no suspicious items were immediately found.
The incident delayed the start of the school’s May Week assembly, which includes the crowning of the May Court king and queen and competitions between the various student classes, which culminate in the annual May Week Track Meet in the afternoon, after students perform community services activities around town. After about a half-hour delay, the school was released to resume normal operations.
According to police, “further investigation, as well as cooperation from other students” helped officers locate the item that was brought to school, which was off-campus but nearby. It turned out to be a “realistic looking” air-soft style pistol (essentially a toy that uses air to propel plastic BB’s), police said.
The Sweet Home School District is addressing the issue with the student and their family at this time. If anyone has information that may be helpful to this case, we encourage you to contact the investigating officer to have the information added to the investigation.
Senior Officer Sean Potter is the primary investigator on this case, and can be reached by calling the non-emergency line at (541) 367-5181. Case number for reference is 202603313.