By Amanda Codispoti and Shawna Morrison
The Roanoke Times
ROANOKE, Va. — Was it a rifle? Or a black umbrella? Roanoke police, responding to Monday’s reports of a man with a rifle at Valley View Mall, couldn’t be sure, so they evacuated the region’s largest shopping complex and vainly hunted the man for 10 hours. Tuesday, after seeing store security pictures of himself splashed across the region’s news media, the man came forward.
He was carrying an umbrella, police said. The drama cost retailers four prime shopping hours, frightened hundreds of shoppers and employees, drained the resources of city and state police, and held the city in high anxiety.
But, like a similar scare this month outside Blacksburg High School, authorities were right to treat “man-with-gun” reports as serious emergencies, police and law enforcement experts said. “Obviously the safety and security of everybody is first and foremost,” said Roanoke police Capt. Monti Lee. “You’ve got to take it seriously.”
Whether at a shopping mall or outside a school, police give priority to man-with-gun sightings for good reason. “Particularly in today’s climate of school shootings, which by the way are very rare, it’s better to err on the side of caution,” said Tod Burke, a criminal justice professor at Radford University.
The possibility of a shooter conjures Virginia Tech and Columbine, the 2007 Westwood Mall shooting in Omaha, Neb., or the Tucson, Ariz., attack this year that killed six and wounded 13, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Sometimes, the calls are a hoax. And sometimes they turn out to be nothing more than an umbrella, an item that cleared an Iowa mall in 2009 under circumstances remarkably similar to Roanoke’s.
“The worst thing that can happen is we inconvenience people,” said Lt. Steve Taylor of the Blacksburg Police Department, which responded to the March 3 call of a man with a rifle outside the high school. “We know that not every single gun call is going to turn into a terrible shooting tragedy,” Taylor said. “But we don’t have a crystal ball.”
Roanoke police and state troopers swarmed Valley View Mall just after 5 p.m., when at least two people reported a man with a firearm. Police reviewed store security pictures and decided with mall managers to evacuate shoppers. Officers told workers to lock security gates and stay out of sight.
Some employees were stuck for hours. The 10-hour hunt for the supposed gunman concluded about 3 a.m. No one was found. “Based on the citizens’ accounts and the immediate review of the store video, the Police Department acted with the safety and security for the citizens and patrons of Valley View Mall,” police said Tuesday in a statement. The mall prohibits weapons. Mall manager Louise Dudley said she was pleased with the police response. “We are always concerned when something like this happens,” Dudley said. “Our customer is our primary concern.” Dudley said the shopping complex was back to normal Tuesday. At least one business owner feared the gun scare would affect sales.
“You can already tell,” said Mehul Vaidya, owner of P K Jewelers, who said the shutdown spoiled his busiest hours. “There weren’t as many people here during lunchtime. The mall hasn’t been busy all day.” Ben and Lisa Rice, Roanoke natives and parents of 3-year-old twin boys, strolled the mall Tuesday afternoon.
“I felt a little nervous coming here today, but I thought maybe it’s safer today because he wouldn’t come back and do the same thing,” Lisa Rice said. The gunman reported outside Blacksburg High School and Kipps Elementary School was never found. Both schools were locked down and students were escorted from the buildings, Blacksburg police said.
Students weren’t allowed to leave without a parent or guardian, and those who typically walk home were driven by police officers. Taylor said Tuesday the investigation continues. He declined to detail what the emergency callers reported to police. Taylor said multiple people called and identified themselves. Each caller was interviewed while police locked down the schools and searched for the man, Taylor said.
“We do believe that they saw what they said they saw,” Taylor said. Taylor said the police response would have been the same even if only one person called to report the sighting. Multiple calls gave further credence to the reports, he said. “If the call involves a gun, it’s going to be a priority response,” Taylor said.
That means every available officer helps. Police secure the area of the reported sighting, search for the person, “do whatever we can to get citizens out of harm’s way,” and contact the media, Taylor said. “The real question is, how do we keep from underreacting, because that’s the danger,” Taylor said. “We cannot afford to underreact.”
Copyright 2011 Times-World, LLC