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Wednesday, November 11, 2026Nov 11

Brainerd High active shooter threat found to be false as ‘swatting’ calls target Tennessee schools Wednesday

Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Police park outside and on the lawn of Brainerd High School. Chattanooga Police respond to a false call reporting an active shooter at Brainerd High School on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Police park outside and on the lawn of Brainerd High School. Chattanooga Police respond to a false call reporting an active shooter at Brainerd High School on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Police park outside and on the lawn of Brainerd High School. Chattanooga Police respond to a false call reporting an active shooter at Brainerd High School on Wednesday, May 3, 2023.

Law enforcement officers responded to a false report of an active shooter at Brainerd High School on Wednesday, putting the school on lockdown and shutting down traffic on North Moore Road as officers worked to clear the campus of the possible threat.

The threat was found to be false, Hamilton County Schools spokesman Steve Doremus said by phone Wednesday.

The district believes it was an instance of “swatting,” or falsely reporting an emergency to send law enforcement out on an unfounded call, Doremus said.

“To the best of my knowledge, there have been no acts of violence at any of our schools today,” Doremus said by phone.

(READ MORE: Vanderbilt Poll: Tennesseans support ‘red flag’ gun laws in name of school safety)