This story has been updated.
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The discovery Friday of a student restrained in a bathroom at Indian Trail Junior High School in Addison, and the resulting hard lockdown at the school, left students and parents shaken over the weekend. Adding to their fear and frustration was a perceived lack of information provided by Addison police, some parents said.
But at 8:45 p.m. on Sunday, Addison School District 4 Superintendent John Langton released a statement to parents, saying Addison Police completed their investigation. There never was a suspicious person or intruder at the school as originally thought, he said.
"Unfortunately, these circumstances resulted from an individual student’s poor decision," he said. "This isolated incident did not involve other students or adults."
For several hours Friday, some 1,300 students were locked in their classrooms with the lights out and windows covered after the female student was found restrained at about 9:45 a.m. It was alleged that an intruder had entered the school; initial dispatch reports even provided a description of the suspect. Police dogs and helicopters searched the area, but a suspect was never found.
Parents have been concerned and angry with a lack of information coming from Addison police, the state of security procedures at the school and the effect all of this might have on the children, especially the girl who was restrained. She was taken to the hospital for treatment, according to an article in The Daily Herald Saturday.
Some parents felt a lockdown was traumatizing for students and had questioned why students were not evacuated.
"The staff at Indian Trail immediately implemented our emergency procedures based on the initial report of a potential threat," Langton said. "The police, school staff and students responded to a perceived threat as trained."
He said counselors will be available when school resumes on Tuesday, after the Columbus Day holiday, for students and staff who may need assistance coping with the incident.
