Reports on Feb 26 incident released

Staff reports
OCCC Pioneer

A safety and security incident report, released March 8, along with a second incident report released by the President Paul Sechrist’s office March 10, reveals further details of an incident that took place Feb. 26 that resulted in a report of a gunman in the college Library and a gun misfiring by an OCCC security officer.

Events started to unfold the morning of Feb. 26 when a bulletin indicating a threat had been made toward college campuses of a possible shooting that day was circulated outside of the Safety and Security office.

According to college officials, the alert was not state specific or even campus specific. It did, however, have an attachment of a photo of the person who had made the threat.

According to the president’s report, because of a swim meet taking place on campus that day, Safety and Security Officer Brandon Wheeler shared the information with several Aquatic Center employees, including Recreation and Fitness Director Roxy Butler, and Aquatic and Safety Training Specialist James Hensley, suggesting they review the Aquatic Center’s emergency procedures.

Wheeler stated in a report he filed that he told his supervisor, Maj. Keith Bourque, he shared the information with Butler because “there could be up to 900 people … in the building for the swim meet that would not be aware of the procedures for an incident.”

Butler, in turn, consulted with her supervisor, Acting Vice President for Community Development Jessica Martinez-Brooks as to what steps needed to be taken and who at the meet might need to be notified.

Martinez-Brooks, who declined comment because of an ongoing investigation, gave Butler the go-ahead to inform “certain swim meet officials” but no one else.

The president’s report shows Martinez-Brooks then contacted Adult Leaning Center Secretary Tina Arzate and “informed [her] of a possible threat that Safety and Security had received.”

The president’s report showed Martinez-Brooks told Arzate to review the shelter in place instructions in her area — the fourth floor of the college library.

Arzate, who also declined comment, instead referring reporters to Executive Vice President Jerry Steward, then shared the information with other employees in her area, including a work-study employee, identified in the Safety and Security incident report as  Mary Teter.

Teter, who is on vacation and could not be reached for comment, reportedly tried to contact Martinez-Brooks to ask if she should notify any other employees on the library’s fourth floor.

When she couldn’t reach Martinez-Brooks by telephone, Teter reportedly called Barbara Fulton, administrative assistant to Pat Berryhill, executive director of Institutional Advancement, asking what she should do.

Fulton, who also declined comment pending the investigation, reportedly then consulted with Berryhill. According to the report, Teter told Fulton the phones in her area had an “active shooter on campus” message, and asked what action should be taken.

In the report, Fulton said she told Teter she should “move to appropriate shelter,” if that message was being relayed by the college’s IT phones.

Teter reported that Fulton also “agreed that the teachers should be alerted as well as other OCCC personnal working and meeting on the fourth floor of the Library at that time.”

Math Professor Ernest Gobert was among the people Teter notified.

Gobert called Safety and Security, telling them what he had been told by Teter and asking for confirmation.

OCCC Safety and Security Dispatcher Patricia Keasling took the call.

She reported that, in his phone call, logged at 10:12 a.m., Gobert said there was a man with a gun in room 402 of the Library.

There is no recording of the call, according to the president’s report.

Wheeler responded to the call, along with Officer Tim Densmore.

In his report, Wheeler said when the officers approached Gobert in room 402, Gobert  told them he didn’t know who had a gun but that “a lady named Mary” had come to his classroom saying there was a person with a gun on campus. 

Gobert also declined comment because of the ongoing investigation.

At the time Gobert called, Safety and Security Director Ike Sloas “attempted to send an armed intruder alert through the IP phone system,” the president’s report reads.

“The alert was not sent because Mr. Sloas failed to properly activate the alert.”

Believing there was a mechanical failure, Sloas sent a second alert. However, this time, he sent out a fire alarm alert to the Main Building.

As people spilled out of the Main Building, Sloas realized the mistake and sent yet another alert — this time the correct one. The time is 10:19 a.m.

In the meantime, the report shows Teter returned to her office and was told by Arzate the report had been false as verified by Martinez-Brooks.

Teter was told to backtrack and tell all those she had reported a shooter on campus to that it wasn’t true.

In his report, Wheeler said he also notified his fellow officers that the report was  false after the fourth floor had been cleared.

Still, he determined, “we needed to do an entire search of the library, floor to floor.”

It was during this search that Bourque joined several other officers on the Library’s third floor “to do a detailed search.”

It was also there that Bourque accidentally fired his gun, sparking a second panic — one that included the Main Building.

Wheeler’s report reads: “We proceeded to the first door (multimedia room 300) where Maj. Bourque drew his service weapon. Officer Densmore opened the door and as Maj. Bourque went to enter the the room, his weapon discharged.

“Maj. Bourque proceeded to clear the room and came out. He holstered his weapon and advised over the radio that there had been an accidental discharge.”

The president’s report shows the gun was fired as Bourque pointed his gun into room 300  with his right hand and took his flashlight into his left hand, raising it.

“Maj. Bourque’s left hand holding the flashlight struck his right hand holding the service weapon. [He] then accidentally discharged the weapon. The bullet struck the wall in room 300.”

Bourque, who was reached by phone, said he wasn’t able to comment because of the ongoing investigation.

Facilities Management Director Chris Snow heard the shot and reported over his hand-held two-way radio, “A shot has been fired. I repeat, a shot has been fired.”

Snow also declined comment on the incident.

Based on Snow’s report, Sloas sent out another armed intruder message — the second of the day.

Not long after, Bourque radioed in that he had fired his gun accidentally.

By this time, Oklahoma City Police officers had arrived on campus and were informed the report was false.

The report reads: “After OCPD officers and OCCC Safety and Security personnel searched the  Library and after confirming that the shot was a shot fired accidentally by Major Bourque, it was determined there was not a ‘shooter on campus’ nor was there any shot fired except for the shot fired by Maj. Bourque.”

However, the OCPD advised college officials to close the campus for the remainder of the day so a thorough search of all buildings could be conducted.

At 11:06 a.m., one final message of the day is sent via the IT phone system, saying OCCC is closed for the day.

The swim meet was allowed to continue.

Sechrist said a “top-to-bottom comprehensive review” of the incident is in progress.

“This review will examine our safety, security and emergency procedures, and our campus security plan, including our response to perceived or actual security threats.”

Sechrist said an outside firm has been brought in to conduct the review.

“We have engaged the services of an outside firm, 3CI Consulting, LLC, to assist and provide a third-party and highly knowledgable analysis, review, and recommendations,” he said in a letter.

3CI is a security consulting firm based in Oklahoma, he said.

Sechrist also has asked that a task force, comprised of students, faculty and staff, put together an emergency communications review. The group will be called the Timely Emergency Communcations Task Force.

Sechrist said recommendations from both the consulting firm and task force will be made available to him by May 7.

Millie Tibbits, Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action director, confirmed there is an ongoing investigation but could not comment on the details.