Open or closed? Messages mixed at California State Capitol after "credible threat"
SACRAMENTO -- Around 3 p.m. on Thursday, a sign went up on The State Capitol's entrance: "State Capitol Temporarily Closed to the Public." This, more than seven hours after Capitol Police reported a "credible threat" involving the Capitol, made by a suspect wanted in shootings in Roseville and Citrus Heights that happened Wednesday.
At 8:45 a.m. Thursday morning, legislative staffers were notified sessions would be delayed. By 9 a.m. Senate staffers received notifications that there was a "credible threat" and legislative sessions were moved to an off-site building nearby.
More information on the impacts to lawmakers came out in a joint statement from Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Los Angeles):
We notified staff and members swiftly and out of an abundance of caution, Senate session was redirected to the O Street building and Assembly Session was modified to be a check-in session. Staff who are able to work remotely were allowed to do so. We are grateful to the CHP, Sergeants-at-Arms, Secretary of the Senate, the Assembly Chief Administrative officer, and our law enforcement partners for responding quickly to keep members of the Legislature and our staff safe. We apologize for the adjustments and interruptions to the members of the public who planned to come to the Capitol today to make their voices heard. In this situation, we must put everyone's safety and security first. We encourage everyone to stay alert and stay safe."
Between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The State Capitol was still moving, but it was unclear if the evacuations were mandatory or voluntary. Staffers that had yet to arrive to The Capitol were told to stay home.
By noon, Capitol tours had resumed. One tour guide told CBS13 all of the guides went home shortly after 9 a.m. with news of the credible threat, but they began to trickle back to work by 11 a.m.
A Galt school group with third and fourth graders were inside on a self-guided tour, that a chaperone said, went as planned.
"We came right through security, it felt like an apocalypse, the place was empty, and we thought that was kind of strange," said Douglass Gibson, a chaperone.
Gibson said the group never felt unsafe and believed that inside The Capitol was the safest place they could be.
"It did feel a little strange, we got phone calls from parents, 'Are you guys in the capitol right now?'" said Gibson.
Others who spoke to CBS13 said they were not aware of any threats when they arrived and thought it was a "slow day" at the Capitol, due to the lack of people inside.
One school group canceled their tour after a chaperone from another group told them the Capitol was closed. This, part of the mixed messages from the event, as at this time the public was still being let-in to the Capitol.
California Highway Patrol's Capitol Protection Division did not update as to if the "credible threat" was clear, nor if the evacuations were mandatory and a timeline of how long they officially lasted. It's also unclear what prompted the "closed to the public" sign to go up at the Capitol entrance around 3 p.m. Thursday.
