High school and middle school on lockdown as police investigate threat of violence

A Maryland high school and middle school were placed on lockdown due to a “threat of possible violence” on Tuesday morning.

A possible threat was reported at Severna Park High School, according to the Anne Arundel County Police Department. Nearby Severna Park Middle School was also put on lockdown during the investigation.

The lockdown has since been lifted after the threat was deemed “non-credible” by authorities.

The high school had received a call at around 9.30am about a possible threat nearby, a police spokesperson told the Capital Gazette.

Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) reported that the schools were on “hold status”, meaning no one was allowed to move about the building, or enter or leave the buildings. AACPS added that all students and staff were safe.

Two other schools, Benfield Elementary and Broadneck High School, were also placed under “hold status”.

All schools are within a three-mile radius of Severna Park, except for Broadneck High School, which is located in nearby Cape St Claire.

Police fanned out across the area, but no evidence of weapons were found on school property.

The “hold status” for all four schools was lifted at around 11.05am, police said.

AACPS is the fourth largest school system in Maryland, and the 36th largest in the United States.

A neighbouring Maryland county also reported a threat to a high school on Tuesday morning, although it is unclear if the two incidents are related.

At 10.30am, police in Montgomery County reported that Wootton High School was told to shelter-in-place and Albert Einstein High School was evacuated after bomb threats.

The shelter-in-place status was lifted and students were allowed to return after the threats were later deemed “non-credible”, police said.

The Independent has contacted the AACPS and the Anne Arundel County Police Department for further information.