High school students with pellet guns prompt lockdowns at 3 SLO County schools

Three Templeton schools were placed on lockdown Wednesday morning as sheriff’s deputies responded to reports of a “suspicious subject” on campus.

According to San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office public information officer Tony Cipolla, Vineyard Elementary School, Templeton Middle School and Templeton High School were placed on lockdown as a precaution after reports indicated the subject appeared to be armed.

According to emergency scanner traffic, two males were reportedly seen near where agriculture students keep animals on the school grounds.

Sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene of the report around 10:40 a.m. and began to establish a perimeter around the streets west of the schools, according to scanner traffic. A search of that area and the neighborhood on Ag Hill Road west of the campuses ensued.

Around 11 a.m., the two subjects seen near the school were identified as high school students with pellet guns, Cipolla said.

After the false alarm was confirmed, police units were cleared from the scene and lockdowns at all three schools were lifted, Cipolla said.

This story was originally published November 15, 2023 at 10:49 AM with the headline "High school students with pellet guns prompt lockdowns at 3 SLO County schools."