{
  "id": "2020-11-21-missouri-state-university-monroe-apartments-drive-by",
  "slug": "missouri-state-university-monroe-apartments-drive-by-2020-11-21",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Missouri State University",
    "shortName": "MSU",
    "state": "MO",
    "type": "public-masters",
    "alertSystemName": "Missouri State Alert"
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2020-11-21",
    "type": "shots-fired",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "Drive-by shots hit an apartment building; active-shooter alert corrected minutes later",
    "headlinePublic": "Drive-by shots hit an apartment building; active-shooter alert corrected minutes later",
    "summary": "On the evening of Saturday, November 21, 2020, [Missouri State University sent a Missouri State Alert incorrectly reporting an active shooter at Monroe Apartments](https://www.ky3.com/2020/11/22/missouri-state-students-alerted-of-active-shooter-via-email/) on Bear Boulevard at 6:04 PM CST. Eight minutes later, a correction alert clarified that only shots had been fired and there was no active shooter. [A vehicle drove north on National Avenue and fired four rounds at the Monroe Apartments building](https://www.the-standard.org/news/shots-fired-in-drive-by-at-monroe-apartments-on-msu-campus/article_4a2d4e2e-2c61-11eb-9470-3755885e0acd.html), two of which penetrated apartment walls. No injuries were reported and the drive-by shooter was never identified.",
    "outcome": "Springfield Police confirmed the incident was a drive-by, not an active shooter event. Two bullets entered Monroe Apartments through exterior walls but injured no one. No suspects were identified. The campus safety leader later explained the distinction between an active-shooter notification and a shots-fired advisory to local media.",
    "resolution": "all-clear-issued",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 0,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2020-11-21T18:12:44-06:00",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "EMERGENCY! An active shooter has been reported at Monroe Apartments. Avoid the area. If able, RUN to leave area, otherwise HIDE. As a last resort, FIGHT. Police are responding. Report suspicious activity by calling 911.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330303162750791681",
      "sourceDescription": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim emergency notification)",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text of the 6:04 PM CST initial alert as quoted by The Standard student newspaper and corroborated by KY3; the full Run-Avoid-Hide-Fight wording is reproduced identically across sources.",
        "This was the initial and incorrect characterization. Springfield Police later confirmed no active shooter was present; the incident was a drive-by shooting, and MSU issued a correction eight minutes later."
      ],
      "characterCount": 219
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "timestamp": "2020-11-21T18:18:30-06:00",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "audience": "campus",
      "verbatimText": "UPDATE: Report of shots fired at Monroe House. Avoid the area. THERE IS NO ACTIVE SHOOTER THREAT AT THIS TIME.",
      "characterCount": 110,
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330304614730780674",
      "sourceDescription": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim)",
      "annotations": [
        "Official campus X cascade recovered in PR6."
      ],
      "type": "update"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "update",
      "timestamp": "2020-11-21T18:25:16-06:00",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "‼️UPDATE‼️\nThere was NOT an active shooter situation tonight at or near MSU’s campus. \nA caller heard four shots, two bullets struck Monroe Apartments. No injuries \nOfficers are on scene collecting evidence",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceDescription": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim update)",
      "annotations": [
        "The 8-minute gap between the incorrect initial alert and this correction became the focus of a post-incident media briefing by the MSU campus safety leader."
      ],
      "characterCount": 206,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330306315508457478"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 4,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "UPDATE: Shots fired at Monroe House. Springfield Police are investigating. There is no threat to the campus and normal activity can resume.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330307301450854401",
      "sourceDescription": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim all-clear)",
      "annotations": [
        "Official all-clear tweet between the \"NOT an active shooter\" update and the SUV detail update",
        "Chronology from tweet snowflake IDs: 1330303162 (initial) → 1330306315 (not active) → 1330307301 (this) → 1330318276 (SUV)"
      ],
      "characterCount": 139,
      "timestamp": "2020-11-21T18:29:11-06:00"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 5,
      "type": "update",
      "timestamp": "2020-11-21T19:12:47-06:00",
      "channel": "twitter-x",
      "verbatimText": "UPDATE: An SUV was driving north on National Avenue. Four shots were randomly fired from the vehicle. Two bullets hit Monroe House, penetrated the walls and entered two rooms. There were no injuries, and there is no further danger to campus.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceDescription": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim update)",
      "annotations": [
        "Two bullets penetrated exterior walls of Monroe Apartments but caused no injuries. The all-clear explicitly authorized residents to return to normal activities."
      ],
      "characterCount": 241,
      "sourceUrl": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330318276027707394"
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Shots fired at Monroe Apartments, MSU calls off active shooter threat - KY3",
      "url": "https://www.ky3.com/2020/11/22/missouri-state-students-alerted-of-active-shooter-via-email/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Shots fired in drive-by at Monroe Apartments on MSU campus - The Standard",
      "url": "https://www.the-standard.org/news/shots-fired-in-drive-by-at-monroe-apartments-on-msu-campus/article_4a2d4e2e-2c61-11eb-9470-3755885e0acd.html",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "After shots fired Saturday at Missouri State housing center, campus safety leader explains emergency alerts - KY3",
      "url": "https://www.ky3.com/2020/11/23/after-shots-fired-saturday-at-missouri-state-housing-center-campus-safety-leader-explains-emergency-alerts/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Missouri State University sends alert of active shooter - ABC17NEWS",
      "url": "https://abc17news.com/news/2020/11/21/missouri-state-university-sends-alert-of-active-shooter/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "@MissouriState emergency posts on X — Monroe Apartments shots fired",
      "url": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330303162750791681",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "@MissouriState update on X — no active shooter",
      "url": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330306315508457478",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "@MissouriState update on X — SUV drive-by details",
      "url": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330318276027707394",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "@MissouriState all-clear on X — Monroe House",
      "url": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330307301450854401",
      "type": "official-social"
    },
    {
      "title": "@MissouriState on X (verbatim)",
      "url": "https://x.com/MissouriState/status/1330304614730780674",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "context": "On the evening of November 21, 2020, a vehicle traveling north on National Avenue opened fire on [Monroe Apartments](https://www.the-standard.org/news/shots-fired-in-drive-by-at-monroe-apartments-on-msu-campus/article_4a2d4e2e-2c61-11eb-9470-3755885e0acd.html), an on-campus housing complex at Missouri State University in Springfield. Four shots were fired; two bullets penetrated the building's exterior walls and entered individual apartment rooms. No residents were struck. The incident's significance lies in what followed: [MSU sent an initial alert at 6:04 PM CST classifying the event as an 'active shooter,'](https://www.ky3.com/2020/11/22/missouri-state-students-alerted-of-active-shooter-via-email/) prompting students to follow Run-Hide-Fight protocols. Eight minutes later, a correction alert downgraded the threat to 'shots fired' with no active shooter present. The rapid escalation and correction became a teaching moment: the university's campus safety leader held a media briefing the following day to [explain the protocols driving the distinction between an active-shooter notification and a shots-fired advisory](https://www.ky3.com/2020/11/23/after-shots-fired-saturday-at-missouri-state-housing-center-campus-safety-leader-explains-emergency-alerts/), and to defend the decision to alert first and correct quickly. The drive-by shooter was never identified. Monroe Apartments sit on Bear Boulevard at the heart of Missouri State's campus in Springfield, MO.",
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "drive-by",
    "shots-fired",
    "active-shooter-false-alarm",
    "correction-alert",
    "on-campus-housing",
    "missouri",
    "springfield",
    "alert-protocol"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-31",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-18",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}