Disturbance puts school serving as voting center on lockdown
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A domestic disturbance on Tuesday afternoon locked down a school that’s a polling place for the primary election.
For more than two hours, election officials had encouraged voters to avoid Clarence Farrington School 61, 4326 Patricia St. That’s off West 30th Street east of Georgetown Road. The polling place reopened by 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Police had closed a road in a residential area west of the school, and asked people to avoid the area for their own safety.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department tweeted at 2:36 p.m. Tuesday that the domestic disturbance involves a “possible barricaded person” near the school, but the incident “is not in any way associated with the school or voting center.”
IMPD by 3:55 p.m. had reopened the 3100 block of Normandy Road to traffic.
IMPD tweeted at 3:40 p.m. Tuesday that a SWAT team searched a Normandy Road home, but the person being sought was not inside. However, no immediate word was given on whether the lockdown at the school had been lifted.
“Officers and detectives are continuing to investigate. The details will be presented to the prosecutor’s office for charging considerations,” said a 3:35 p.m. Tuesday tweet from IMPD.
The Marion County Election Board tweeted at 2:07 p.m. Tuesday that voters should avoid the school that’s on lockdown until further notice. Instead, voters were asked to go to these nearby voting centers:
- International Marketplace Coalition, 4233 Lafayette Road.
- Indianapolis Fire Department Station 30, 2440 N Tibbs Ave.
- Indianapolis Public Schools’ Northwest Middle School, 5525 W. 34th St.
Marion County voters can vote at any of 186 polling places, called vote centers, for Tuesday’s primary election. Polls will close at 6 p.m.
Clarence Farrington School 61, a part of the Indianapolis Public Schools district, recorded 511 students in pre-kindergarten through Grade 6 as of Oct. 1. News 8 called the school but no one answered the phone.
News 8 also reached out to a spokesperson for IPS but had not had a response by 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. IPS voters are considering a $410 million referendum to support building projects at 23 schools on Tuesday’s ballot.
