{
  "id": "2024-09-19-university-of-pennsylvania-false-alarm",
  "slug": "university-of-pennsylvania-false-alarm-2024-09-19",
  "institution": {
    "name": "University of Pennsylvania",
    "shortName": "Penn",
    "state": "PA",
    "type": "private-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "UPennAlert",
    "enrollment": 28306
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2024-09-19",
    "type": "police-activity",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "resolution": "unfounded",
    "headline": "'Shots fired' alert traced to a car running over bike-lane delineators",
    "headlinePublic": "'Shots fired' alert traced to a car running over bike-lane delineators",
    "summary": "On September 19, 2024, at 5:05 PM EDT, Penn issued a [UPennAlert warning of 'SHOTS FIRED' at 39th and Walnut streets](https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/09/shots-fired-3900-block-walnut-upenn-alert) after witnesses reported hearing what sounded like gunfire. Two individuals were arrested after fleeing a vehicle stop by Philadelphia Police. The sounds perceived as gunshots were actually a speeding car running over bike lane delineators. An all-clear was issued at 5:35 PM EDT.",
    "outcome": "No shots were actually fired. Two individuals were arrested on campus after fleeing a Philadelphia Police vehicle stop. Neither suspect was armed. The entire incident from alert to all-clear lasted 30 minutes.",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 0,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2024-09-19T17:05:00-04:00",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from Daily Pennsylvanian reporting; the headline phrase 'SHOTS FIRED' at 39th and Walnut is verbatim from the alert as quoted in the Daily Pennsylvanian",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestamp": "2024-09-19T17:35:00-04:00",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "While initial reports stated gun shots had been fired, upon investigation it was determined no shots had been fired.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/09/shots-fired-3900-block-walnut-upenn-alert",
      "sourceDescription": "Daily Pennsylvanian quoting the updated UPennAlert verbatim",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from the updated UPennAlert as directly quoted by the Daily Pennsylvanian: 'While initial reports stated gun shots had been fired, upon investigation it was determined no shots had been fired.'",
        "The all-clear was issued at 5:35 PM EDT, exactly 30 minutes after the initial alert",
        "Investigation determined no shots were fired; the perceived gunshots were caused by the vehicle striking bike lane delineators while fleeing police"
      ],
      "characterCount": 116
    }
  ],
  "context": "On September 19, 2024, the University of Pennsylvania sent a UPennAlert at 5:05 PM EDT warning of [SHOTS FIRED at 39th and Walnut streets](https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/09/shots-fired-3900-block-walnut-upenn-alert), a major intersection on campus. Philadelphia Police officers had been conducting a vehicle investigation on Walnut Street when the driver began driving erratically, swerving into the bike lane and knocking down the delineators designed to block cars. The sounds of the car hitting the plastic delineators were mistaken for gunshots by witnesses. Two individuals fled the vehicle and were apprehended on campus: one near the [Tangen Center on Sansom Street and the other near Perry World House](https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/09/shots-fired-3900-block-walnut-upenn-alert). Neither suspect was armed. An all-clear was issued at 5:35 PM EDT. The incident later prompted [criticism from faculty](https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/10/upenn-safety-alert-fear-protest-unnecessary) who questioned whether the alert's language unnecessarily heightened fear on campus.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "The false alarm lasted 30 minutes from the initial alert to the all-clear",
    "Bike lane delineators being struck by a speeding car produced sounds that multiple witnesses interpreted as gunshots",
    "The incident prompted discussion about whether UPennAlert language could be more measured to avoid unnecessary panic"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Two individuals arrested on Penn's campus after fleeing vehicle stop (Daily Pennsylvanian)",
      "url": "https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/09/shots-fired-3900-block-walnut-upenn-alert",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "UPennAlert scare tactics (Daily Pennsylvanian opinion)",
      "url": "https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/10/upenn-safety-alert-fear-protest-unnecessary",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "UPennAlert Notifications (Penn DPS)",
      "url": "https://www.publicsafety.upenn.edu/upa/",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "false-alarm",
    "shots-fired",
    "police-activity",
    "vehicle-chase",
    "pennsylvania",
    "ivy-league",
    "private-university"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-03",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-05-03",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}