Vermont police apologize for mock shooting that sent shaken high school students hiding under tables and texting goodbye

By Taylor Galgano, Amanda Musa and Amy Simonson, CNN

(CNN) — Police in Burlington, Vermont, apologized to high school students who were shaken by a role-playing and simulated shooting that they say sent them diving to the ground to hide under tables and text “goodbye” and “I love you” to their loved ones.

About 20 students from a Burlington High School Year End Studies (YES) forensics class went to the police station for a field trip Wednesday where school officials knew a crime reenactment would occur, said school district spokesperson Russ Elek in a statement to VTDigger.

However, school officials “did not realize the presentation would take place without warning,” Elek said.

During the visit, three members of the Burlington Police Department simulated a robbery scenario that did not target students or faculty, the department said in a statement.

Police said they communicated with school staff last month about details of the protest, “including saying the training incident allegedly involved 'the use of imitation firearms during a simulated shot “. It is unclear whether teachers were informed that the simulation would occur without warning.

A 15-year-old student in the class said students were listening to a presentation when he suddenly heard people enter the room shouting.

“There are like three people fighting. The fake gun, which we didn't know was fake at the time, was pulled out and fired what I believe to be blanks. They left shells. And it was still going strong,” the sophomore, who asked not to be named, told CNN. “Me and almost the whole class dove to the floor to hide under the tables because we didn't know what was happening. »

CNN has contacted the Burlington Police Department about the weapon used in the simulation.

The student said the person holding the gun was wearing a mask and heard someone yelling “get down.” He said he was shaking and some children were taking out their phones to text family members.

The email school officials sent to families said: “Even though the gun was fake, the reenactment involved screaming and fake gunshot sounds. »

“If these are the people, in quotes, who “protect” us, why did they make such a stupid decision without really thinking? … Especially with the school shootings and all that, we're all already on edge,” the student said.

Police said they asked school staff if the protest would be appropriate for the group of students, saying: “It's about as real as it gets, and it's certainly exactly the sort of thing that we face most frequently.”

“YES Program staff responded: “I think these students will feel good about this simulation. We will inform parents and students,'” according to the police statement.

But in an email sent to students' families after the incident, school officials wrote that the simulation “was surprising to many students and may have left some feeling confused and scared,” the VTDigger.

Burlington School District Superintendent Tom Flanagan and Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad released a joint statement Friday apologizing to students.

“It is clear to us that the events of this week resulted from a breakdown in communication between two groups trying to work together to create a meaningful experience for students,” the statement read in part. “The BSD and BPD are committed to doing a better job by clearly defining descriptions, expectations and programs and seeking clarification when working together in the future. None of us want something like this to happen again in the future.

Students “literally thought they were being shot”

The sophomore and his parents said they didn't know there would be a shooting demonstration during the field trip. A grandparent who is the guardian of one of the students also said the school did not inform them of the planned mock shooting. CNN was unable to independently confirm what parents and students were told ahead of the trip.

“If I had known this was going to happen, I never would have put him through this,” said the grandparent, who asked to remain anonymous to protect his grandchild’s privacy.

The grandparent said the students “literally thought they were being shot,” adding that their grandchild didn’t know what to do or how to react.

The grandparent told CNN that her child “froze” during the protest.

“Other kids were diving on the floor, trying to get under furniture, doing whatever they could to get out of the situation,” the grandparent told the student.

The Burlington Police Department said it “apologizes to all students in attendance who were upset by the specific scenario and crime scene in the presentation.”

A representative for Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak also told CNN that parents and students were upset after the protest.

Mayor Mulvaney-Stanak said in a statement to CNN that she apologizes “for the harm and distress this incident has caused to Burlington High School students – students who tragically grew up in a society where gun violence , including in schools, has become commonplace.”

The mayor said she hopes the school district and police department “take responsibility for the damage caused and think about all the ways this should have been handled differently and not happen again in the future.”

School officials held a “restorative circle” Friday to allow students and teachers to share their thoughts about the incident, according to an email sent to parents and students.

The 15-year-old student told CNN that teachers and police were present, but that he felt like the police were “not holding themselves directly accountable.”

CNN's Elizabeth Wolfe contributed to this report.

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