News

Alexandria City High School’s King Street campus was placed on “secure the building” status and the ACHS Minnie Howard Campus was placed on “hold” status briefly this afternoon after an anonymous report was issued that someone was outside of the school with a gun, according to a letter sent to parents.

“Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) Safety and Security staff and the Alexandria Police Department (APD) investigated the anonymous external threat reported to the ACPS Anonymous Reporting System that someone was outside of the school with a gun,” ACHS Interim Executive Principal Lance Harrell wrote. “It was determined by APD this was an unsubstantiated threat.”


News

Alexandria’s been hit with a series of swatting calls recently and the city is eyeing new legislation that could make perpetrators literally pay for it.

A proposed section of the city code, which Mayor Justin Wilson said takes advantage of authority granted by the state, would allow the City Manager or a designee to bill a flat fee after “determining the reasonable expense of an appropriate emergency response.”


News

The Alexandria Police Department was the victim of a swatting call on Sunday night (Jan. 8), after a male told a 911 dispatcher that he “accidentally” shot his brother in the chest after playing with their father’s gun.

The call was made at around 11:25 p.m. on Sunday. The caller told police that the incident occurred in an apartment in the 5400 block of Richenbacher Avenue near Holmes Run.