A firearm threat sent Berkeley Hall School into a restricted lockdown Monday afternoon, triggering a police search of the private Brentwood campus that turned up no weapon. The scare lasted about an hour before the school reopened its gates so parents could pick up their kids, capping a tense stretch for families along the 16000 block of Mulholland Drive.
The lockdown began in the mid-afternoon on Monday, according to MyNewsLA.com, after Citizen App reports indicated a firearm threat on the campus. Police swept the school grounds and, per the outlet, found no weapon. The Los Angeles Police Department ultimately determined the threat was an apparent swatting call.
Once the search came up empty, Berkeley Hall lifted the lockdown and opened its gates, letting anxious parents retrieve their children after roughly an hour of uncertainty. The same report notes that parents flocked to the school as soon as news of the threat spread, with a line of traffic reportedly stretching as far back as the 405 freeway's Skirball Center Drive exit.
A Pattern of Hoax Threats Across Southern California Campuses
Berkeley Hall's ordeal echoes a similar scene that played out at another Brentwood private school. abc7.com reported that Milken Community School, a private Jewish middle and high school, went into lockdown on a Monday afternoon after LAPD received a call about a supposed bomb threat around 1 p.m. on Zeldins Way. When officers arrived, no threat was found, and LAPD said the call appeared to be a hoax.
Farther south, Carson High School faced a nearly identical sequence. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department was alerted to a possible bomb threat there at about 10:45 a.m., and deputies determined by 12:15 p.m. that there was no threat, reopening the campus, according to NBC Los Angeles. The same outlet reported that Burbank High School buildings were evacuated and students dismissed after a possible threat that police later confirmed was also a swatting call.
The scares have not been confined to the Los Angeles area. Patch reported that false reports of a shooting at Bret Harte Middle School in Hayward led to a significant police response and lockdown on Oct. 1. Officers searched the campus and found no evidence of a shooting or injuries, and lockdowns were lifted once police ensured there was no viable threat, per the outlet's account.
Why Schools Are Being Warned to Prepare
Federal officials say the Berkeley Hall incident fits into a broader national trend. According to Education Week, incidents of swatting in educational environments have increased in recent years, with the practice defined as anonymous, false shooting reports that trigger a law enforcement response and disrupt schools. The outlet noted that schools in Connecticut, Idaho and Nebraska reported incidents just in September.
In response, federal agencies have urged districts to prepare before a hoax call ever comes in. Education Week reported that officials recommended schools coordinate in advance with law enforcement and train staff to recognize the characteristics of false reports, guidance aimed at helping campuses respond faster and calmer the next time a threat — real or not — forces a lockdown.
