ACTIVE SHOOTER SCHOOL TRAINING

2014

Fog of TerrorChaosFear

Our goal is to share information with those that could find themselves in one of these critical events and provide training

for an “active shooter” incident and a frame of reference.

Presentation Outline

Case StudiesSituational AwarenessMind-set of an Active ShooterRun, Hide & FightLaw Enforcement Response

Columbine High School

1 Teacher Murdered12 Students Murdered20 Students Injured

Characteristics of Shooters During Incident

DeliberateRoboticNo Fear

Jared Cano

Friend tipped police active shooter plan Cano expelledFantasized killing more than VirginaTech/Columbine/Norway Summer Camp 2011Planned to commit suicideCano video taped his plans prior to his arrest

Newtown, CT December 14, 2012Sandy Hook Elementary School

Adam Lanza – 20 years oldKilled MotherSemi-auto AR-15 Assault Rifle2 hand guns28 dead including 20 childrenSuicide• Loner• Asperger Syndrome• Spent most of time on a computer playing violent video games• Quiet to a depth which could not be penetrated

Waseca Junior/Senior High SchoolMinnesota 2013

The Plan

• Kill family• Diversionary fire in rural area to distract first

responders• Violent plans in 180 page notebook filled with notes on

school shootings and massacres• Critiqued other school events

Promised a bigger shooting event• Practiced setting off bombs at a nearby playground• Neighbor tipped police after seeing Ladue entering

storage unit filled with supplies

The Goal“Take out as many students he could”

The Clock is Ticking….

5 Year Study of 65 Events:

Someone dies every 15 seconds

Typical event is over in 3 to 4 minutes

Police response is 5 to 7 minutes

FRAME OF REFERENCEYou have a frame of reference when;You have Thoughts, Feelings about an issue

You have a strong frame of reference when:You have personal experiences with an issue

It is difficult to have a Frame of Reference about an issue if :•Have no feelings about it•You have no personal experience (behavioral) with it•You have never thought about it•DO NOT BELIEVE IT COULD EVER HAPPEN TO YOU

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF AN ACTIVE SHOOTER

They “told” some one

Shooting is planned

Motive is revenge- “make it fair”

History of depression

78% suicidal at time of shooting

Student was “different”

Acting out their emotional needs

LIFE EXPERIENCES OF AN ACTIVE SHOOTER(CASE STUDIES)

• Abused and or felt abused• Socially isolated• Socially anxious• Aggressive as children• Chronically depressed• “Odd kids” have few friends if any• “Odd kids” are teased• “Odd kids” try their parents’ patience and love

• Threats• Allusions to violence• Excessive or intimidating reference to mass murder or

shooting sprees, real or fiction• Intimidating weapon comments• Depression or suicidal thoughts• Paranoia• Repeatedly accusing other people of causing one’s

problems• Unreasonable complaints

LIFE EXPERIENCES OF AN ACTIVE SHOOTER

(CASE STUDIES)

CONT..

With their guns they are acting out

EMOTIONAL NEEDS

To be heard/seen

To be recognized

To be seen as powerful

To have their unbelievable pain and rage acknowledged

BIOLOGY

NORMAL BRAIN ACTIVITY- ProactiveKillers-kill to achieve a thought out goal–ierobbery

ABNORMAL BRAIN ACTIVITY- Reactive Killers-kill in response to real or imagined-insults-ie school shooters

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REACTIVE KILLERS

Low prefrontal activity

High limbic activity

High cingulate gyrus activity

Aggressive-Obsessive-No empathy-

BIOLOGY

MIDDLE SCHOOL vs HIGH SCHOOL

Middle School shooters: are usually alivewhen first responders arrive

High School/College shooters: are usually not alive when first responders arrive

What you can expect of yourself

1. Hyperventilation

2. Accelerated Heart Rate

3. Adrenaline Rush

4. Loss of Peripheral Vision

5. Diminished hearing

Three Phases of Our Mental Disaster Response

Denial

Deliberation

Decisive Moment

This Can’t Be Happening

Denial…Underestimating the severity

Denial is delaying action

Delaying action costs time

Delaying action can cost lives

Denial and Social Proof

Diffusion of Responsibility

• In ambiguous situations we look at others for cues on how to act

• If they do nothing, you will do nothing

• If they act, you will act

Deliberation We made it past

Denial

Now decide what to do….

Fear enters the equation

Brain not working well

Deliberation

Stress Side Effects

Ability to think is seriously impaired

Vision narrows

Time distortion

Auditory exclusion

Fine motor skills deteriorate

Programming Responses

Think through events before a disaster

Plan your response

Practice your response

“The best way to get the brain to perform under extreme stress is to repeatedly run it through rehearsals beforehand…”

Decisive Moment

Denied

Deliberated

Time to ACT!

Be Prepared

“The one thing you don’t ever want to do is have to think in a disaster”….9/11 Survivor

RUNHIDE

FIGHT

RUN! Always Be Aware

Know Escape Routes

Exits

Windows

Decide to Leave at First Opportunity and Report

Go into LockdownMode

LOCK! Lock Doors

Barricade access points

Door stops

Furniture

Rope doors closed

Cover windows

Darken room

Go into Run mode again

Lockdown Considerations Barricading doors:

Outward opening

Eye bolts

Rope

Inward opening

Furniture

Kick bars

Door stops

FIGHT!!

Have a survivor’s (not a victim’s) mindset

Decide right now that your are going to do whatever it takes to survive

Getting shot does not mean that you are dead

You can and must keep going!

Law Enforcement

The older tactics used were to contain the suspect and wait for tactical teams to arrive to make entry.

Today, rapid deployment by all law enforcement personnel should be used to minimize harm to innocent persons.

Law Enforcement Assessment

Activity

On-going violence (active shooter)

Placing or detonating explosives designed to cause injury

Number of Suspects involved

Increased potential for mass casualties

Immediate Action / Rapid Deployment

Rapid Deployment Objectives:

1. Save lives

2. Locate the threat

3. Neutralize the threat

4. Remove the threat

5. Contain the threat

HOSTAGE RESCUEIf suspect alone

Treat as barricaded gunmanContainPrevent ability to move negotiation

If suspect with hostages

ContainNegotiationsLaw Enforcement concealment, close enough to enter area

If suspect begins to endanger hostages –SWAT Members will immediately intervene-Glass breaking, explosions, bright lights, smoke – speed, shock, surprise

Hostage Compliance

J.P. Coroner OfficeTeen Life Counts

2013/2014 School Year

2,963 Students Interviewed462 Referrals

DepressionAnxietyCuttingBurningSuicidal

Self Referral

Peer Referral

School System Pro-Active Approach

• Communicate with students encouraging reporting of suspicious activity

• Use technology to create a mechanism indicators of potentially violent behavior and sending alerts about incidents

• Policy to immediately report suspicious persons on campus grounds especially anyone scaling fences

• Automated notification system if an event develops

• Plans for the arrival of law enforcement• Open lines of communication with students

family

Department of Justice-Strategic Approach

• Post-event evidence identified that changes in the subjects’ behavior were not effectively communicate in ways that could have prevented tragedies.

• Many recent events have involved offenders who were knows to have mental health problems. Mental health problems are contributing factors to the violence

• Natural order of family unit is to protect and care for its members; however the family has the potential to serve as first source of identifying problems

• Cultural shift-reporting abnormal behavior is in best interest of society – a civic responsibility -

Final Thought

IN AN ACTIVE SHOOTER INCIDENT, IT IS TEAMWORKAND PREPARATION, WHICH WILL PROTECT INNOCENT PERSONS AND SAVE LIVES.