HARTLAND, Wis. (CBS 58) — A 50-year-old Hartland woman has been charged with swatting after prosecutors say she falsely reported being held at gunpoint inside her apartment, prompting a tactical police response and a precautionary lockdown at a nearby high school.

Lisa M. O'Donnell is charged with swatting — false reporting of an emergency, a Class I felony, and disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor. The felony charge carries a maximum penalty of 3½ years in prison, a $10,000 fine or both.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Waukesha County, Hartland police were alerted around 1 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26, to a reported domestic incident at a residence in the 400 block of Campus Drive.

Investigators said O'Donnell had called the police department's nonemergency line and told a dispatcher she was the victim of domestic violence and that the incident had just occurred.

The complaint says O'Donnell began crying during the call and told the dispatcher she did not feel safe because another person was still inside the residence. She allegedly said there were guns in the home and that she had been threatened with a firearm.

"I'm so scared!" O'Donnell allegedly told the dispatcher.

O'Donnell identified a family member as the person inside the home before she stopped responding to the dispatcher's questions for approximately six minutes, according to the complaint.

When officers arrived, investigators determined the apartment number O'Donnell had initially provided was incorrect. Dispatchers told officers O'Donnell was hiding inside the residence and was unable to leave.

A detective who serves as a trained crisis negotiator with the Suburban Critical Incident Team then spoke with O'Donnell by phone for approximately 16 minutes.

During that conversation, O'Donnell repeatedly asked officers to enter the residence and help her, according to the complaint. She allegedly said she was in a bedroom with the family member and that the person had a loaded handgun.

When asked whether the gun was pointed at her, O'Donnell allegedly said yes and indicated she was being held hostage at gunpoint. Police eventually lost contact with her.

Officers attempted to call O'Donnell back and reached out to family members. Deputies also stopped a vehicle registered to the person O'Donnell had accused and ordered the driver out at gunpoint, but investigators said the vehicle was being driven by that person's son.

As officers continued trying to make contact at the apartment, a woman exited onto a balcony and began smoking a cigarette. Police identified her as O'Donnell.

Officers said O'Donnell appeared intoxicated. She initially went back inside the apartment before eventually coming out through the front door.

Police then entered the residence and found no one else inside, according to the complaint.

A detective reported smelling a strong odor of alcohol coming from O'Donnell and said she was struggling to maintain her balance and slurring her words.

When investigators asked whether she remembered calling police, O'Donnell allegedly had no recollection of doing so. Police said she could not explain why she had reported someone inside the apartment with a firearm.

Officers ultimately found no evidence that another person had been inside the residence and did not find a weapon, according to the complaint.

Investigators later contacted the family member O'Donnell had identified during the call. That person told police he was not involved in the reported incident, had not been at O'Donnell's residence that day and had only spoken with her by phone.

Because of the allegations and the potential danger to responding officers, the Suburban Critical Incident Team was activated and authorities treated the incident as a potential hostage situation. Officers established a perimeter around the residence.

Authorities also issued a reverse 911 shelter-in-place notification for residents within a 1-mile radius.

Lake Country Lutheran High School was placed on a precautionary lockdown because the incident occurred as the school was approaching dismissal time and students and staff could have encountered the active law enforcement response.