{
  "id": "2023-04-10-delaware-county-community-college-lockdown",
  "slug": "delaware-county-community-college-lockdown-2023-04-10",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Delaware County Community College",
    "shortName": "DCCC",
    "state": "PA",
    "type": "community-college",
    "alertSystemName": "DCCC Alert"
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2023-04-10",
    "type": "armed-person",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "Report of a possible gun after an altercation briefly locks down campus; no weapon found",
    "headlinePublic": "Report of a possible gun after an altercation briefly locks down campus; no weapon found",
    "summary": "Delaware County Community College's Marple Campus was briefly locked down on the afternoon of April 10, 2023, after a report of a possible person with a gun following an altercation. [Marple Township police arrived in under a minute](https://patch.com/pennsylvania/marplenewtown/no-gun-violence-delco-community-college-despite-lockdown-police) and found no weapon and no disturbance; an uninvolved bystander near the altercation had thought a gun may have been displayed. The college [closed the campus for the rest of the day out of caution](https://www.dccc.edu/news/04102023/delaware-county-community-college-marple-campus-closed-monday-april-10-after-brief) and resumed normal operations the next morning.",
    "outcome": "Police found no gun, no shots fired, and no injuries. Marple Township Police Chief Brandon Graeff said the report stemmed from a third party who saw an altercation and believed a firearm may have been displayed. The Marple Campus was closed for the remainder of April 10; all afternoon and evening classes, activities, and events were canceled. Normal operations resumed April 11, 2023.",
    "resolution": "unfounded"
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "Approximately 1:40 PM EDT on April 10, 2023",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "DCCC Emergency Alert: Shelter in Place or Run, Hide, Fight",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://twitter.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645478306425475072",
      "sourceDescription": "Delaware County Community College official Twitter/X account (@DelawareCCC), tweet at approximately 1:40 PM EDT on April 10, 2023",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from DCCC's official Twitter/X account and simultaneous Facebook post on April 10, 2023",
        "The college's website also carried the same message: 'DCCC Emergency- Shelter in Place or Run, Hide, Fight'",
        "Unusually terse: presents shelter-in-place and Run-Hide-Fight as alternatives rather than sequential instructions",
        "Marple Township police were called at about 1:30 PM EDT and arrived in under a minute, finding no gun and no actual disturbance"
      ],
      "characterCount": 58
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestamp": "2023-04-10T14:21:36-04:00",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "ALL CLEAR. The emergency situation is under control. There is no threat to the community.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645492241060835328",
      "sourceDescription": "@DelawareCCC on X (verbatim)",
      "annotations": [
        "Verified complete alert text on https://x.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645492241060835328; archiveUrl null.",
        "Official same-day cascade from @DelawareCCC."
      ],
      "characterCount": 89,
      "archiveUrl": null,
      "confidence": "high",
      "lastUpdated": "2026-07-18"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestampApprox": "Afternoon of April 10, 2023, after the police sweep",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "The Marple Campus was briefly locked down earlier  followed by an All Clear issued by police. The College realizes that today’s events may have been troubling. All remaining afternoon and evening classes are canceled at Marple. Branch campuses, and online classes, remain open.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceDescription": "@DelawareCCC on X (verbatim Marple all-clear + cancel)",
      "annotations": [
        "The college's decision to close the campus for the rest of the day even after the all-clear illustrates the 'abundance of caution' posture community colleges often adopt for unfounded weapon reports.",
        "Verified exact official X/status text; prior reconstruction annotations removed per 2026-07-18 audit."
      ],
      "characterCount": 277,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645519684102488098",
      "timestamp": "2023-04-10T16:10:39-04:00"
    }
  ],
  "context": "Delaware County Community College's main campus sits in Marple Township, west of Philadelphia. On the afternoon of April 10, 2023, an altercation on campus led an uninvolved bystander to believe a gun may have been displayed, prompting a shelter-in-place lockdown under the college's protocols. According to [Patch](https://patch.com/pennsylvania/marplenewtown/no-gun-violence-delco-community-college-despite-lockdown-police), Marple Township Police Chief Brandon Graeff said officers were called around 1:30 PM EDT and arrived in under a minute, finding no person with a gun and no actual disturbance. The college's own [news release](https://www.dccc.edu/news/04102023/delaware-county-community-college-marple-campus-closed-monday-april-10-after-brief) said the Marple Campus was locked down briefly, given an all-clear by law enforcement, and then closed for the remainder of the day with all afternoon and evening classes, activities, and events canceled. Normal operations resumed the next day. The incident is a textbook example of a second-hand, unfounded weapon report driving a full campus lockdown, a recurring pattern at open-access institutions.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "The lockdown was triggered by a third-party perception of a possible gun during an altercation, not by any confirmed weapon",
    "Marple Township police arrived in under a minute and found no weapon, no shots, and no injuries",
    "The college closed the entire Marple Campus for the rest of April 10, 2023 even after the all-clear, then reopened normally April 11"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Delaware County Community College Marple Campus Closed Monday, April 10 After Brief Lockdown",
      "url": "https://www.dccc.edu/news/04102023/delaware-county-community-college-marple-campus-closed-monday-april-10-after-brief",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "No Gun, Violence At Delco Community College Despite Lockdown: Police",
      "url": "https://patch.com/pennsylvania/marplenewtown/no-gun-violence-delco-community-college-despite-lockdown-police",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "type": "official-social",
      "title": "@DelawareCCC on X (verbatim Marple all-clear + cancel)",
      "url": "https://x.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645519684102488098",
      "accessedDate": "2026-07-18"
    },
    {
      "type": "official-social",
      "title": "@DelawareCCC X cascade 1645492241060835328",
      "url": "https://x.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645492241060835328",
      "accessedDate": "2026-07-18"
    },
    {
      "title": "Delaware County Community College official Twitter/X account (@DelawareCCC), tweet at approximately 1:40 PM EDT on April",
      "url": "https://twitter.com/DelawareCCC/status/1645478306425475072",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "armed-person",
    "lockdown",
    "shelter-in-place",
    "unfounded",
    "pennsylvania",
    "community-college"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-29",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-18",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}