The Maryland State House went under lockdown for two hours Thursday evening as scores of police officers searched the building after a phone threat was received from a man claiming to be armed and on his way, officials said.
Officers from the Maryland Capitol Police, Maryland State Police, Annapolis Police Department, and the Anne Arundel County Police Department rushed to the scene to secure the building and evacuate lawmakers and personnel.
By 7 p.m., two hours after the call, police had cleared the building, and people were allowed to return inside. No gunman or weapons were found, Annapolis Police Department spokesperson Bernie Bennett told the press.
“You have to react to every threat as though it’s credible and serious,” he explained.
Currently the Maryland House is in the midst of its yearly 90-day session of the General Assembly, a busy time when lawmakers, lobbyists, activists, journalists and even tourists gather in great numbers at the state buildings.
The chaos could have been worse—most delegates and senators had already left for the day when the threat was phoned in.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Lt. Governor Aruna Miller, and Senate President Bill Ferguson were present in the building at the time, preparing for a reception across the street at the governor’s mansion, where Mayors from across the state were gathering for the event.
As heavily armed police officers entered the building with police dogs, people in the State House were urged to hide in their offices behind locked doors, with many unaware of what exactly was going on—very little information was conveyed to those present in the rush of the moment, The Baltimore Banner reported.
Police cars lined up outside the building, blocking roads that lead to a road that encircles the State House.
At around 5:30 p.m. police knocked on the doors of the ground-floor press offices to escort reporters out to an empty hearing room.
An Associated Press reporter saw an officer hurrying up a staircase with his gun drawn. State employees also were seen evacuating the building.
Nick Cavey, a spokesperson with the Maryland Department of General Services, said Capitol police coordinated sweeps of the State House, Senate, and House office buildings and surrounding grounds and determined that the areas were secure and clear of any potential threat.
“The lockdown and shelter in place was lifted at 6:52 p.m. and all remaining occupants, including the governor, lieutenant governor, and Senate president, were escorted from the building, per situational protocol,” Mr. Cavey said in a statement.
“State House grounds have resumed standard security procedures and protocol.”
Senate President Bill Ferguson and the speaker thanked all the law enforcement officers who responded to the threat.
“We and everyone else in the legislative complex are grateful for their presence as we continue to do the people’s work,” they said in a joint statement.
Governor Wes Moore also thanked law enforcement.
“These brave men and women aren’t just Maryland’s finest—they’re Maryland’s promise. They define what it means to be a Marylander,” he said in a statement.
This is the second threat made to the State House this year, after a bogus bomb threat was made in January, at the same time that threats were emailed to various state capitol buildings around the country.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
