HELENA (AP)
Police responding to a report of a possible gunman at Carroll College ended up talking to State Auditor John Morrison, whose Blackberry handheld device had been mistaken for a weapon. The Independent Record reported Saturday that it was Morrison who was at the center of the police response Thursday afternoon. At least 16 law enforcement officers responded to a report of a man in dark clothing slipping what looked like a handgun into his pocket while walking into the student union building. Two officers, one with a rifle, entered a conference room to look for the person in question. "Then they looked at me and said 'Oh,' " Morrison said Friday. The auditor said he did not have a handgun. After talking to officers and receiving an apology for the misunderstanding, Morrison returned to a campus meeting. The college and law enforcement officials handled the situation well, said Morrison, adding that "it's better to be safe than sorry." Students and staff in the immediate area were evacuated.
