Sheriffs respond to shooter call at Liberty

The Madera County Sheriff’s Office received a call from Liberty High School regarding a possible active shooter.

The school was placed on lockdown per district protocol following an automated PA announcement on Wednesday at about 12:30 p.m.

The School’s Resource Deputy was on campus and immediately responded to the area of the reported shooter and discovered no evidence of a shooter or critical incident in the area.

During the lockdown, Madera County Sheriff’s Deputies secured the entire campus and located no intruder or threat.

Upon further investigation, it was determined the lockdown was made in error via an automated internal communications system in place at the school.

According to a release from Golden Valley Unified School District, an automated lockdown announcement went out to the entire campus at 12:30 p.m. The school went into lockdown and the Sheriff’s department was on scene.

The Campus was locked down and cleared in less than five minutes with all students and staff accounted for. A call also went out to GVUSD Educational Options and Ranchos Middle School, which are near LHS about the status.

However, District IT confirmed where the lockdown call came from and determined the alert was sent in error from the automated alert system.

The lockdown was lifted at 12:48 after checking with the IT department. The Sheriff’s department also confirmed the entire campus was clear.

“We would like to reassure students, staff, and parents that there is no active threat, and the campus is safe,” said the MCSO in a statement. “There is no evidence of a threat to students or staff at any time.”