SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) responded to the area near South Tahoe High School (STHS) on Monday, October 13, after they received a report of a man wearing a helmet, possibly armed with a shotgun, near the fence line of the school. Due to the proximity of where the man was spotted, and out of an abundance of caution, STHS was placed on lockdown.
Patrol officers responded to the area to investigate at about 12:25 p.m. They located the man near the shared fence line between an apartment complex and the school. He was wearing a full facemask and black pants, and they detained him and discovered he had an air rifle.
The man was a resident of the apartment complex and had been shooting his air rifle at paper targets. Officers investigated the situation and determined there was no criminal intent in his actions. Officers educated the man about the optics of his actions, given their proximity to the high school. He was released at the scene. A suspicious activity report was taken on the incident.
STHS students were at lunch when the lockdown was placed, so not all were on campus. The lockdown was lifted after approximately 14 minutes.
Police officers across the country frequently respond to situations with uncertain circumstances. While SLTPD aims to avoid causing unnecessary alarm, they said they “err on the side” of caution when it comes to suspicious activity around schools.