Theatrical prop prompts St. George police response

ST. GEORGE — A student at Desert Hills High School brought a fake rifle to school Friday for use as a theatrical prop. But people who thought the gun was real called police, and that prompted a lockdown of that school and nearby Desert Hills Intermediate School.

Just before noon, a student wearing blue jeans and a black hooded sweatshirt arrived at school with what St. George Police Sgt. James Van Fleet said could have looked from a distance like a real older-style weapon.

At least 20 officers, including SWAT members, responded to the schools and set up a perimeter while a resource officer inside the high school searched for a student matching the description callers had given. The lockdown lasted about a half hour until the student was located, at that point revealing the gun was fake.

"This wasn't an intent to cause alarm," Van Fleet said. "This was just, 'Hey, I'm bringing in a prop."'

Although he felt bad for parents who were uncertain for a while about what was happening at both schools, Van Fleet looked at the incident as training that went well.

"You can never get enough exercise for the unfortunate real thing," he said. "I'm sure parents would answer it differently."

— Stephen Speckman