Response to an Active
Shooter
Presenter:
Commander Darren Higashiyama
Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office
Response to an Active shooter
Today we are going to talk about:
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What an active shooter is
Law Enforcement Response
EMS Response
Active Shooter inside of a Hospital
ACTIVE SHOOTER
One who participates in a random or
systematic shooting spree,
demonstrating intent to continuously
harm others. The subject’s overriding
objective appears to be that of mass
murder rather than other criminal
conduct such as robbery or hostagetaking.
-Nation Tactical Officers Association
February 2, 1996
• 14 year old Barry Loukaitis killed two students
and one teacher in Moses Lake, Washington,
during algebra class.
• This was the first of many school shootings that
started to hit National News.
From then on School Shootings have become common
place in today’s news
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Feb. 2, 1996 Moses Lake, 2 killed, one
wounded by 14 yoa Barry Loukaitis
Feb. 19, 1997 Bethel, Alaska: Principal
and 1 student killed, 2 wounded by
Evan Ramsey 16 yoa.
Oct. 1, 1997 Pearl, Mississippi, 2
students killed, 7 wounded by Luke
Woodham 16 yoa. Killed his mother
before hand.
Dec. 1, 1997 West Paducah, KY, 3
students killed, 5 wounded by Michael
Carneal 14 yoa, as they participated in a
prayer circle at Heath High School.
Dec. 15, 1997 Stamps, Ark, 2 students
wounded by Colt Todd 14 yoa. He was
hiding in the woods and shot them in
the parking lot.
March 24, 1998, Jonesboro, Ark, 4
students and 1 teacher killed, 10
wounded at Westside Middle School on
a false fire alarm. Shot by Mitchell
Johnson 13 yoa and Andrew Golden 11
yoa.
April 24, 1998, Edinboro, PA, 1 teacher
killed 2 students wounded at a dance by
Andrew Wurst 14 yoa.
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May 19, 1998, Fayettevile, TN, One
student shot three days before
graduation by 18 yoa honor student
Jacob Davis.
May 21, 1998, Springfield, OR, 2
students killed, 22 others wounded by
15 yoa Kip Kinkel, who was arrested a
day earlier for bringing a gun to school.
June 15, 1998, Richmond, VA, 1 teacher
killed 1 wounded by 14 yoa boy.
April 20, 1999, Littleton, CO, 14
students dead, 23 wounded, by 18 yoa
Eric Harris, 17 yoa Dylan Klebold.
May 20, 1999, Conyers, GA, 6 students
injured by depressed 15 yoa Thomas
Solomon.
Nov. 19, 1999, Deming, NM, 12yoa
Victor Cordova killed 1 in hallway.
Dec. 6, 1999, Fort Gibson, OK, 4
students wounded by Seth Trickey 13
yoa.
Feb. 29, 2000, Mt. Morris Township,
MI, 6 yoa girl killed by 6 yoa boy at
school by accident.
March 10, 2000, 2 students killed by
Darrel Ingram 19 yoa.
School Shootings
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May 26, 2000, Lake Worth, FL, 1 Teacher
killed by Nate Brazill 13 yoa on the last day
of class.
Sept. 26, 2000, 2 students wounded by
same gun.
Jan. 17, 2001, Baltimore, MD, 1 student
killed.
March 5, 2001, Santee, CA, 2 killed and 13
wounded by Charles Williams 15 yoa.
March 7, 2001, Williamsport, PA, Elizabeth
Bush 14 yoa, killed 1 female in the cafeteria.
March 22, 2001, Granite Hills, CA, 1
Teacher and 3 Students by Jason Hoffman
18 yoa.
March 30, 2001, Gary, IN, 1 student killed
by expelled Donald R. Burt Jr. 17 yoa.
Nov. 12, 2001, Caro, MI, 17 yoa, Chris
Buschbacher took 2 hostages in Learning
Center.
Jan. 15, 2002, New York, NY, 2 Students
wounded.
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April 14, 2003, New Orleans, LA. 1 student
killed 3 wounded.
April 24, 2003, Red Lion, PA, 14 yoa James
Sheets killed principal and then himself.
Sept. 24, 2003, Cold Spring, MN, 2 students
killed by John McLaughlin 15 yoa.
March 21, 2005, Jeff Weise 16 yoa killed
grandfather, arrived at school, killed 1
teacher, a security guard, and 5 students, he
then killed himself.
Aug 19, 2005, Miami, FL: 17 yoa male killed
after football game.
Sept. 8 , 2005, Richmond, CA: H/S
custodian recovers dumped body.
Sept. 23, 2005, Sandy Spring, MD: 15 yoa
female stabbed during fight w/2 other girls
Sept. 30, 2005, N.Y. NY: 4 students
stabbed. 1 death in fight.
School Shootings
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Oct. 7, 2005, Richardson, TX: 17 yoa male student shot
after a fight broke out.
Oct 26, 2005, Moulton, AL: 55 yoa first grade teacher
beaten to death by 15 yoa at head start.
Oct. 27, 2005, San Leandro, CA : 14 yoa female shot
murder suicide by male
Oct. 27, 2005, Fresno, CA: 37 yoa male shot in school
parking lot
Nov. 9, 2005, Jacksboro, TN, 15 yoa, killed assist
principle and wounded 2 other faculty
Nov 16, 2005, San Antonio, TX: Police shoot 16 yoa
male after stealing a car at school
Nov. 17, 2005, Tampa, FL: 17yoa male shot by 15, 16,
and 19 yoa
Dec. 6, 2005, Garden Grove, CA: 16 yoa male beaten
and shot at athletic fields
Dec. 16, 2005, N.Y. NY: 56 yoa female died after assault
by 12 yoa female
Jan. 13, 2006, Longwood, FL: 15 yoa male shot by
SWAT after taking hostages and threatening suicide and
raised a pellet gun at officers.
Jan. 13, 2006, Pinson, AL: 17 yoa male shot during
fight.
Jan. 15, 2006, Winter Springs, FA, Christopher Penley
shot by police in a Middle School bathroom after he
terrorized kids with what turned out to be a pellet gun.
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Jan. 30, 2006, Great Falls, MT: 16 yoa male shot
himself in school bathroom
Feb. 23, 2006, Roseburg, OR, 14 yoa wounded one.
March 23, 2006, Milwaukee, WI: 15 yoa male beaten to
death at school bus stop.
May 5, 2006, Miramar, FL: 19 yoa male shot at school
dance.
May 18, 2006, Conway, SC: 18 yoa female stabbed to
death at school by boyfriend
June 5, 2006, L.A. CA: 17 yoa shot after school from
“bullies”
June 6, 2006, Gary, IN: 21 yoa male shot after school
graduation ceremony
July 12, 2006, L.A. CA: 16 yoa female shot gang related.
Sept. 28, 2006, Bailey, CO. Duane Morrison (53),
entered Platte Canyon High School and took six
hostages. He released four students one by one during
the three hour standoff. 16 yoa Emily Keyes was
sexually assaulted, shot and killed. Morrison killed
himself.
Oct. 2, 2006, Nickel Mines, PA: 32-year-old Charles
Carl Roberts IV, carried three firearms - a shotgun, a
semiautomatic pistol and a rifle.
He also had a stun gun, two knives and a bag holding
600 rounds of ammunition.
He was also carrying an assortment of tools and other
items, including toilet paper. That led police to believe
he was prepared for an extended siege.
He entered an Amish School, barricaded the door and
killed six students.
Police Protocols
Dylan Klebold
Eric Harris
On April 20, 1999 at Columbine High School these two
killed 13 people and wounded 21 in Littleton, Colorado.
They intended to kill 500 people using pipe bombs, 9mm
tec-9, 9mm carbine rifle, and a sawed off shotgun.
Columbine
• Back then the protocols for police was to follow the five “C’s”:
Contain, Control, Call SWAT, Communicate, Come up with a plan.
• Lessons learned proved that the old way of doing things did not
work.
• A new concept of “Go Teams” was created. Three to Four officers
arrived and went inside to neutralize the threat.
Police Protocols
• Average shootings last no longer then 12 minutes
with most as short as 3-4 minutes. The average
police response to a school is 10 minutes with
more then 93% of the incidents on school
campuses were finished prior to L.E. arrival.
Police Protocols
• A change in philosophy happened.
“FIRST COME FIRST SERVE”
Protocols: Law Enforcement
• L.E. will respond directly to the threat.
▫ We will bypass the wounded
▫ Goal: Stop the active shooter first and foremost.
• Our Goal is to contain or neutralize the Suspect(s).
• Hostage situations. Contain and negotiate. *
• L.E. sets up operation/tactical command with EMS/Fire
Protocols: Law Enforcement
• Secure the scene
• Escort EMS in
• Set up triage points
• Secondary sweep
• Evacuation
• Re-unification
Protocols: EMS/Fire
• EMS/Fire: set up unified command w/L.E.
• EMS/Fire: stage in secure area.
• EMS/Fire: scene clear & secure, triage and
transport.
Protocols: EMS/Fire
• Once the scene is secure & clear, EMS will enter
the scene and triage, treat and transport.
• How much time does it take L.E. to “Secure &
Clear a Scene?”
Warm Zone Concept
• After Newtown, CT shooting there has been a
paradigm shift for EMS personnel. This entails
EMS to go into a “WARM” zone to triage, treat
and evacuate patients.
“Risk a little to save a little, risk a lot to save a lot.”
* Ernest Mitchell Jr., USFA fire administrator
Warm Zone Concept
• Assessing Risk
▫ Rapid incapacitation of the suspect decreases the
risk associated with Fire/EMS personnel.
Operating in a “clear” but not “secure”
environment is the warm zone concept.
What are WE prepared for?
• Bombs… I.E.D.s
• Active shooter
• Mass Casualty Incident
• Hostage Situation
Plan, plan and then plan again
• Develop a plan on response.
▫ Fire Chiefs: are you willing to send personnel in
warm zones?
▫ Gear?
 Ballistic Vests, Ballistic Helmets?
▫ Work with local L.E.
Train, train and then train again.
• TEMS or TCCC training
▫ Tactical Emergency Medical Support
▫ Tactical Combat Casualty Care
• Mass Causality Incident Drills
Hospitals
What to expect?
Hospitals
• Columbine: 24 injuries, 2 more injured trying to escape. (13)
• Thurston High School, Springfield, OR: 25 injured. (2)
• Virginia Tech: 17 injuries, 6 more injured trying to escape. (32)
• Aurora, movie theater: 70 injuries (12)
• Sandy Hook Elementary: 4 injured, 2 of the 4 died at the hospital.
(26)
• Boston Marathon Bombing: 264 injured (3)
Hospitals
• What is your Mass Causality Incidents plans?
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Triage plans (gunshot, burn/blast)
Staffing (speed dial system)
Incident Command System (ICS) in place?
Support services (blood on hand, blood bank)
Transporting to other hospitals
Admitting / Discharging
Dealing with Families
After care for employees
Shots fired inside of your Hospital
Why would anyone shoot up a hospital?
Shooting inside of your facility
Hospitals are:
Some reasons:
• Open 24 hrs a day
• End of life (suicide)
• Most do not have security
personnel
• Parental custody
• Gang retaliation
• People coming and going
all hours
• Psychiatric patients
• Domestic Disputes
Hospital shootings
• Sept. 2010: A gunman upset over news about his mother's medical condition opened
fire inside Baltimore's Johns Hopkins Hospital, wounding a doctor before fatally
shooting his mom and then turning the gun on himself.
• Jan 2011: Daniel Cesar Dominguez-Garcia, 21, entered the hospital room where a
woman and her child were. An argument ensued. Dominguez pulled out a smallcaliber pistol and fired one shot nobody injured.
• March 2012: A gunman opened fire at a Pittsburgh psychiatric clinic, leaving to two
people dead, including the gunman, and injuring seven others.
• June 2012: Buffalo, NY – A Surgeon opens fire and kills his girlfriend on hospital
grounds.
• December 2012: A man opened fire in a hospital, wounding an officer and two
employees before he was fatally shot by police.
• February 2013: One person shot dead on the grounds of a Portland, OR. Hospital.
• March 2013: A man in a hospice on a hospital campus shot his wife dead and then
turned the gun on himself.
What to Expect????
• Chaos, confusion, disorder!!!
▫ People will be running and screaming.
▫ Fire alarms may be activated.
▫ Sprinkler systems may be on.
▫ Wounded people will be crying for help.
▫ Communications will go down.
Shooting inside of your facility
• Hospitals have adopted code words to alert staff.
• Code Grey: Combative Person without a
weapon
• Code
: Combative Person with a weapon
Lockdown:
Internal vs. External
External Lockdowns: The threat is outside of the
facility. Usually police will notify the facility to
lock down.
• June 17, 2014 West Valley Hospital , AZ
• June 17, 2014 St. Joseph Regional Medical
center, IN
Internal Lockdown
• Usually announced over the intercom
• Lockdown immediately
▫ What if someone needs in your room you are
locked in?
• Wait until the all clear announcement
Run, Hide, Fight
• New philosophy is Run, Hide, Fight.
▫ Teaching this in schools and county buildings
• Run: Leave the building if it is safe.
▫ Be prepared to break out a window
▫ Go away from the gunfire
• Hide: Deny access
▫ Lock the door
▫ Barricade the door, if you use your body, lay flat
on the ground
Run, Hide, Fight
• Hide
▫ Cover the windows if possible
▫ Don’t open the door until the all clear or L.E. tell
you.
• Fight: If all else fails prepare to defend yourself
▫ Fight…fight like your life depended on it, because
it does!!
▫ It’s time to be a Hero!! Don’t wait for someone
else to save you!!
Run, Hide, Fight
• Think right now……
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During a normal shift…..
Where would you run?
Where could you hide?
Could you get out of the hiding place if necessary?
What am I prepared to do to defend myself?
Response Time
• The reality is that THE FIRST 5- 12 MINUTES
BELONG TO YOU!
• The average incident is over in less then 12
minutes. Seung-Hui Cho at Virginia Tech
averaged one shot per 4 seconds. How many 4
seconds are there in 12 minutes?
The aftermath
• Be prepared to be evacuated
▫ Leave personal items behind
• Keep your hands visible and empty
• Avoid quick movements, don’t approach the
officers
• Follow the instructions of Law Enforcement
▫ L.E. may prone you out or push you down, follow
their commands
Ethical and Moral issues
• Do I leave the patients?
▫ Most attacks are directed at hospital staff.
▫ If medical staff are injured or dead, who can they
help?
• Survival should be your number one priority.
▫ Escape, if you can
▫ Hide and lock the door and barricade
▫ Defend yourself.
• Once the smoke clears…you go back to life
saving mode.
What is your facilities plans?
• Does your facility have a Code Silver?
• Does your facility have external & internal
lockdown plans?
• Does your facility have evacuation plans?
Plan, Prevent, Train
• Plan for all hazard events
• Utilize prevention techniques
▫ Control ingress/egress into the hospital
▫ Hire guards
▫ Start budgeting now
• Train!
▫ Train with staff
▫ Train with local Law Enforcement
“Victorious warriors win first
and then go to war, while
defeated warriors go to war
first and then seek to win.”
- Sun Tzu, The Art of War, 500 B.C.