Lyles-Crouch in Lockdown Mode During Police Shooting

Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy went into a lockdown mode when shots were fired outside of the Old Town school Wednesday during a police incident.

A motorcycle policeman was shot by the driver of an Alexandria Yellow Cab after a routine traffic stop, according to City of Alexandria spokesman Tony Castrilli. After the officer was shot, the cab driver led other police on a chase to Fairfax County which ended in a crash off Fort Hunt Road.

• See: Police Officer Shot During Routine Traffic Stop

According to a parent of students at Lyles-Crouch who asked not to be named, police and fire personnel cordoned off the area and used the ballfield to land a Medivac helicopter to transport the injured officer to Medstar Washington Hospital Center.

The school continued with after-school programs but students were dismissed at its Gibbon Street exit, according to a statement sent in the Alexandria City Public Schools daily email newsletter Wednesday. Students normally exit on St. Asaph Street.

ACPS also highlighted in that newsletter that the school system is working with the city’s police and fire departments to improve security at all schools by increasing the number and quality of its cameras, interior and exterior locking systems and door-entry control systems.

ACPS said it also will host a series of community meetings with the police department and school officials to discuss school safety.

“Students were not in any danger and police activity did not involve the school,” reads the statement.

Another parent of a student at the school said two first-grade classes were on the playground when the shooting occurred and were led into the building by teachers. No further outdoor recess was allowed.