‘It was absolute fear and panic’: Some students criticize alert system after false report of SRJC gunman

A false report of a gunman at Santa Rosa Junior College Thursday afternoon forced the evacuation of about 100 students and employees from the school’s art building, where a room-by-room search turned up no suspect, campus police said.

It was the first time in the school’s history that campus police responded to a report of an active shooter, college officials said, and some students criticized the campus alert system for not reaching enough people and not providing enough information.

“Nothing like this has really happened before, where it was in real-time,” Police Chief Robert Brownlee said. “Our team got the message out to the community with the information that we had.”

A student in Analy Hall reported around 2:15 p.m. a relative was in the building and “coming to kill” her, campus police said. Hannah Skoonberg, an art professor, said she was with another teacher in a room on the second floor when the student came in shaking.

“She said that he was trying to kill her because she was pregnant,” Skoonberg said.

Skoonberg shut the door, and then called police.

Police rushed to the building, with the first officers arriving within a couple minutes, Brownlee said. They evacuated classes inside and searched each room for a suspect, a task that took about 10 minutes.

No gunman was found, and the department declined additional assistance from the Santa Rosa Police Department.

“After getting a clearer statement with her at that time, we made the determination that the subject was not on campus,” Brownlee said.

The student admitted to making a false report upon further questioning, and following a mental health assessment, police determined she was a safety risk to others, the department said in a news release.

The student was placed on a 72-hour mental health hold with Sonoma County Behavioral Health, where she will be evaluated further by medical professionals, Brownlee said. Her name was not released by authorities.

“Today was a trying one for SRJC, and I would like to commend our police department for their vigilance and quick action,” said Frank Chong, the college president. “I am relieved that this report turned out to be false, but at the same time am concerned for this student and I hope we can get her the help she needs.”

While there was no gunman found on campus, the incident did spark fear among students and faculty members, some who said they thought of recent mass shootings on school campuses.

Angela Stone was attending the first lab of the semester for her physiology class in nearby Baker Hall when her professor alerted students of a text he received about an active shooter on campus.

The classroom remained on lockdown for about 30 minutes with the curtains drawn, the lights off and the doors locked.

“It was absolute fear and panic,” Stone, 35, said.

Brad Bramy of San Rafael also panicked when he received a screenshot of the alert shortly after it was emailed at ?2:17 p.m. from his 20-year-old daughter, an SRJC student who was on lockdown at Emeritus Hall.

The alert said to avoid Analy Hall, where police were “responding to a report of a subject with a gun,” and provided a phone number and web address for updates.

Bramy said he called the number, pressed nine for emergency information, and the recorded message he heard was an irrelevant one recorded on Oct. 18. There was no update on the school website, either.

“After the lockdown lifted we had a conversation since she was upset, and I told her you cannot rely on these people to protect you when they cannot even give you updated information,” Bramy said. “That is a major failure on the school’s part and a huge gap.”

The alert system uses an online emergency notification software program, which sends text messages and emails to students. Staff also receive alerts on their work emails, and through texts if they opt in, a college spokesperson said.

In an interview, Chong said he plans to review the campus alert system to ensure it’s reliable.

“I plan to meet with the emergency operations team and do an after-action report,” Chong said. “We’re all just relieved that everybody is safe and we’re going to remain vigilant.”

Students and staff members at the adjacent Santa Rosa High School campus sheltered in place as a precaution, according to a post on the school’s Facebook page.

At around 2:40 p.m., the high school resumed its usual schedule and all students were reported safe.