{
  "id": "2022-10-26-massart-wentworth-halloween-prop-gun-lockdown",
  "slug": "massart-wentworth-halloween-prop-gun-lockdown-2022-10-26",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Massachusetts College of Art and Design",
    "shortName": "MassArt",
    "state": "MA",
    "type": "public-bachelors",
    "alertSystemName": "MassArt Alert",
    "alertPlatform": "Rave",
    "enrollment": 2000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2022-10-26",
    "type": "lockdown",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "Armed-person report locks down two neighboring campuses; 'weapon' was a costume prop",
    "headlinePublic": "Armed-person report locks down two neighboring campuses; 'weapon' was a costume prop",
    "summary": "On the afternoon of October 26, 2022, a report of an armed person near 600 Huntington Avenue in Boston [locked down both the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and the neighboring Wentworth Institute of Technology](https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2022/10/26/fake-gun-in-halloween-photoshoot-prompts-lockdowns-at-massart-wentworth/). Both schools pushed Rave Alerts just after 2:00 p.m. EDT telling people to stay where they were and lock doors. Boston Police later determined the \"weapon\" was a [fake gun from a student's Halloween costume photo shoot](https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massart-wentworth-lockdown-campus-person-with-gun/) and lifted the lockdowns.",
    "outcome": "Boston Police conducted a floor-to-floor search and confirmed the suspected weapon was not real. The area was deemed safe at approximately 3:20 p.m. EDT and officers cleared both campuses; no one was charged and no injuries occurred.",
    "resolution": "unfounded",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 0,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "Early afternoon, just after 2:00 PM EDT on October 26, 2022",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from Boston 25 News and CBS Boston paraphrases of the Rave Alert sent 'just after 2:00 p.m.'; official MassArt Alert archive is not publicly retrievable",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestampApprox": "Mid-afternoon, approximately 3:20 PM EDT on October 26, 2022",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "MassArt Alert: ALL CLEAR Boston PD has cleared the area, the lockdown has been lifted. Further information to follow via email.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://liveboston617.org/2022/10/26/person-with-a-fake-gun-causes-lockdown-at-massart/",
      "sourceDescription": "Live Boston quoting the verbatim MassArt Alert all-clear text, October 26, 2022",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim from the MassArt Alert system as quoted by Live Boston; the alert text is: 'MassArt Alert: ALL CLEAR Boston PD has cleared the area, the lockdown has been lifted. Further information to follow via email.'",
        "The 'Further information to follow via email' line matches MassArt's documented follow-up communication practice; a PDF follow-up message was published on massart.edu.",
        "The all-clear cites Boston PD's authority for the all-clear rather than MassArt's own assessment, consistent with police-led incident resolution."
      ],
      "characterCount": 127
    }
  ],
  "context": "Just after 1:15 p.m. EDT on October 26, 2022, Boston Police were called to 600 Huntington Avenue for a report of an armed person, prompting [lockdowns at MassArt and Wentworth Institute of Technology](https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2022/10/26/fake-gun-in-halloween-photoshoot-prompts-lockdowns-at-massart-wentworth/). The two campuses abut each other in Boston's Fenway/Longwood area, so a single report rippled across both. [CBS Boston reported](https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massart-wentworth-lockdown-campus-person-with-gun/) that both schools sent Rave Alerts just after 2:00 p.m. EDT instructing people to stay put and lock doors. [Boston 25 News](https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/two-college-campuses-boston-go-into-lockdown/AKCUWW7Q2JHUPJ7LVUQITRD3FE/) quoted MassArt students who said the 'weapon' was a prop in a friend's Halloween costume photo shoot. After a floor-to-floor search, BPD [deemed the area safe at about 3:20 p.m. EDT](https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/report-of-person-with-a-gun-near-wentworth-university-in-boston/2874318/). The case is an example of a seasonal false alarm: a costume prop near a Clery-covered campus produced an emergency-notification lockdown, then an all-clear once the object was identified.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "A single report near 600 Huntington Avenue locked down two adjacent Boston campuses simultaneously, showing how shared geography couples Clery responses",
    "Both MassArt and Wentworth issued near-simultaneous Rave Alerts just after 2:00 p.m. EDT on October 26, 2022",
    "Boston Police cleared the scene around 3:20 p.m. EDT after determining the reported gun was a fake prop from a Halloween photo shoot",
    "The incident is a seasonal false-alarm pattern: costume props near campuses can trigger lockdowns that resolve as unfounded"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Fake gun in Halloween photoshoot prompts lockdowns at MassArt, Wentworth - Boston.com",
      "url": "https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2022/10/26/fake-gun-in-halloween-photoshoot-prompts-lockdowns-at-massart-wentworth/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Student in Halloween costume causes lockdown on MassArt campus - CBS Boston",
      "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massart-wentworth-lockdown-campus-person-with-gun/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Mass Art students say Halloween costume, prop gun led to lockdown on two college campuses - Boston 25 News",
      "url": "https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/two-college-campuses-boston-go-into-lockdown/AKCUWW7Q2JHUPJ7LVUQITRD3FE/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "MassArt, Wentworth Institute Lockdowns Lifted After False Report of Person With Gun - NBC Boston",
      "url": "https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/report-of-person-with-a-gun-near-wentworth-university-in-boston/2874318/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Live Boston quoting the verbatim MassArt Alert all-clear text, October 26, 2022",
      "url": "https://liveboston617.org/2022/10/26/person-with-a-fake-gun-causes-lockdown-at-massart/",
      "type": "other"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "lockdown",
    "false-alarm",
    "massachusetts",
    "boston",
    "art-school",
    "halloween",
    "fake-gun",
    "emergency-notification"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-28",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-06-01",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}