By Kylie Marsh
Kylie.marsh@triangletribune.com
DURHAM – Durham Public Schools has filed a subpoena to get to the bottom of a series of disruptive lockdowns at Riverside High School.
Riverside’s Media Center was full of concerned parents, students and staff Thursday evening for a town hall called by Durham Public Schools leadership to address the lockdowns.
“It’s taken a toll on everyone,” DPS Superintendent Anthony Lewis said. He acknowledged that the frequency of the lockdowns have become almost routine. “Sometimes, quite frankly, if I’m being honest, you may just question, ‘do I send my child to school today, or do I go check my child out at 12 or 1 before the traditional lockdown?’”
North Carolina State Statute 115C-105.51 requires that all public school districts operate anonymous tip lines for reporting threats to the school community. DPS utilizes two tip lines: Say Something, started by Sandy Hook Promise, and Motorola Solutions’ TipSubmit, called Text-A-Tip. DPS has received 238 anonymous tips since the beginning of the 2025-26 school year.
“We’ve noticed that most of our typical tips are around suicidal ideation, self-harm and bullying,” said LaVerne Mattocks-Perry, senior executive director of DPS Student Support Services.
Twenty-one percent of tips have resulted in a Standard Response Protocol, i.e. either a hold, secure, lockdown, evacuation or shelter. A hold simply results in cleared hallways, but a full lockdown means doors should be locked, lights turned off and everyone silently huddled away from windows. A lockdown can only be lifted by law enforcement.
Mccloyd Bynum, executive director of DPS Safety and Security, said there have been two holds and 19 lockdowns. Of those 19, 14 took place at Riverside. Parents and DPS leaders agree the school is being targeted.
“We have to balance the possibility that a Russian bot is sowing discord in the U.S. by calling in false alarms with the possibility that there’s a disturbed individual there who may escalate,” one parent said. However, not every lockdown is the result of an anonymous tip.
“A lot of times with weapon-related incidents, weapons in schools, etc., it can result in a lockdown because ultimately safety – the safety of our students and the safety of our staff – is the most important,” Bynum said. “It’s definitely an inconvenience, but until we’re able to verify certain information, a lot of times it leads to lockdowns.” No weapons have been found or arrests have been made so far.
Riverside PTA President Jacqueline Wachholz questions whether having an anonymous tip line is better than having a confidential one. “This is what anonymous tip reporting does to a high school that is being targeted,” she said. “We’re watching our kids understand that this is the norm.” Wachholz urged DPS leaders to advocate at the state level for a policy change, having shared that she personally invited Representative Marcia Morey and Senator Sophia Chitlik to the town hall. Neither were able to attend.
Bynum said his office is “getting good information” from the tip lines despite the misuse. “We have definitely developed promising leads,” he said.
The investigation is ongoing in partnership with the Durham Police Department, the Durham County Sheriff’s Department, the North Carolina Center for Safe Schools and now the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Bynum also said Crime Stoppers is offering cash rewards for tips about the fraudulent lockdowns.
