TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— UPDATE 4:10 pm: Full statement from the Vigo County School Corporation:
“On Monday morning, Terre Town Elementary was placed on a “secure response” due to police presence in the area. A “secure response” is used “when it is desirable to secure the school due to an emergency situation occurring outside and not related to the school… to safeguard people within the building”. For elementary students, this translates into recess inside, as opposed to outside.
VCSC Safety and Security closely communicated with Terre Haute Police. Once THPD secured the site and closed their investigation, the “secure response” at Terre Town was lifted. Students or staff members were never in immediate danger. Families were notified via text message and were messaged again once police and our security team lifted the directive.
Thank you to the students, staff and families at Terre Town, who continued their day as usual.”
UPDATE 4:10 pm: Terre Haute Police Department confirmed that the situation in the 2200 block of Berne Avenue stemmed from a domestic battery incident. Sergeant Justin Sears says that when officers responded to the residence, a history search showed that there had been violence with at least one of the people in the home, including threats with weapons.
“Those officers trained to do so backed up to create a perimeter and we tried to establish communication, which was refused by the occupants inside,” Sears said. “At that point, because of the previous history, because of the threats and possible weapons, our Special Response Team responded there to provide resources and a little extra training that the patrol guys needed a little help with.”
The Special Response Team attempted to establish communication by speaking on a megaphone, but Sears says unsuccessful attempts led to other measures being taken.
“We breached the door at one point, we broke a couple windows to try to get a visual or to make communication a little bit easier, all of that was using less-lethal rounds like that,” Sears said. “We used a drone inside as well as a robot, we didn’t have to put any policemen in danger, and we were able to ascertain a lot of information from that to keep our people safe.”
After more than two hours of waiting, the standoff came to an end with no injuries. Police say while the event is still under investigation, Steven R. Henderson, 51, of Terre Haute has been arrested for Resisting Law Enforcement.
Original 9:30 am: The Terre Haute Police Department has sent out a message letting residents know to avoid the area of the 2200 block of Berne Avenue.
The Terre Haute Police Department is at a home in the Terre Town subdivision.
Vigo County School Corporation confirmed that it was placed on a secure hold out of precaution due to the proximity to Terre Town Elementary School. In an emailed statement, THPD SGT. Justin Sears said the incident is several blocks away from the school.
WTWO had a reporter en route to this developing story. WTWO will update this story as more information becomes available.
