Thursday, July 26, 2012

Response to an active shooter

Over the last 20 years we have seen a significant increase in mass shootings.  The most high profile mass shooting were at schools until last year when Representative Gifford was shot in the head.  Six died and 12 were wounded in that shooting.  The most recent active shooting massacre elevated the attack by using tear gas and then opening fire.  In the recent Colorado shooting 12 were killed and 58 wounded.  The main difference in this attack and most others is the amount of stimulation overload that was experienced by the victims.  Think about this for a moment.  You are in a theater with the lights out, a big bight movie screen flashing, very loud speakers and now a man throwing tear gas and shooting.  Let's look at something that is called the Boyd Cycle.  The Boyd Cycle also called O.O.D.A.

O - Observe
O - Orient
D - Decide
A - Act

When something is happening the first thing you do is observe it.  You have not yet processed what it is.  In the Colorado shooting many people observed the shooter walking in to the theater from the exit door.  Orient - You then orient yourself to what is happening.  In this case many people thought the shooter was a part of the show.  This caused the orientation phase to be much longer.  Decide - Once you have oriented yourself to the danger you must decide what to do in a fraction of a second, under extreme stress, and in most cases without any prior training.  Act - Then you must act.  Hoping that your decision is the right one.

Today we are going to cover some techniques and ideas that will increase your chance of survival in an active shooter scenario.

Let's talk about Fight or Flight.  This is an auto response to a dangerous situation.  When danger is near you will either fight or run.  In both shootings that I talked about above, some people chose to lay down and act dead.  I watched an interview of a lady that was in the Arizona shooting.  She said, she thought it best to lay down and act dead.  The shooter systematically started shooting people that were laying down.  He ran out of bullets shooting the lady next to the person being interviewed.  She was next.  If you are in an open parking lot, statistically, you have a much better chance running.  Shooting and hitting a moving target is very difficult.  I am a trained police sniper and I can tell you it takes a lot of practice to get good at shooting a moving target.  Most bad guys do not have the training to master shooting at a moving target.

Cover and concealment - Cover is hiding behind something that will stop a bullet.  Concealment is hiding behind something that will keep you from being seen.  A car is cover and a table or chair is concealment.  If you are running, you should be running to a place of cover.  Then Identify the next place of cover and run to it.  The idea is to continue to create distance.  If you get to the first place of cover and you feel safe, stay until you feel you need to move to the next.  But, do not wait too long.

 Here are a few tips:

  1. Carry a small flashlight.  Get a good one with the highest lumes you can get and are willing to carry.  This can be used to temporarily blind an attacker.  Or in a dark place can help you see to get out.
  2. Sit on an outside isle.  Never sit in the middle of row.
  3. Sit with your back to a wall if possible.  You want to be able to see the front door or entrance.  And you should be close to an emergency exit.
  4. When you walk in to a restaurant, school, or any other building, look for the nearest exit and then a backup exit, Plan A is this door,  Plan B is that door.  You do not need to walk around scared and paranoid.  But you do need to be prepared.  If you already have a plan you take Decide out of the cycle.  This speeds your action and chances of survival.
  5. Have a rally point for family members.  When you walk into a place you need to tell them "If something happens we all will meet here",  "If you can not get here, we will meet there"  You need at least two rally points.  Both need to be in a place that offers additional cover and escape routes.
  6. Back your car into the parking space or pull through.  In moments of high stress backing a vehicle can be very difficult and it will slowdown you escape.
  7. Leave the area.  If an attacks happens leave the area completely.  Once the situation is contained you can give a statement to police.
The bottom line to an active shooter is this:  Someone has to be a HERO!!!  That might not be you, but someone has to take on the shooter.  On July 27th, 2008 at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, TN.  a shooter walked into a crowed church and opened fire.  Greg McKendry a longtime church member and usher intentionally stepped in front of the gun and took the blast saving several people.  Three others in the church tackled the shooter and held him for police.  Now, I would never tell anyone to step in front of a gun.  Most of these types of heroic actions are spontaneous acts.  Because that is who they are.  They don't need to think about it.  If you are unfortunate enough to be within close proximity to the shooter, you have a couple of choices.  Attack, Run, or lay down and hope he/she does not shoot you.  

Concealed carry permit holders - If you have a handgun your decision process has more to it, Attack, Run, or Lay down and hope you do not get shot.  If you choose to attack there are many things to consider like hands on or draw and shoot.  We will focus on draw and shoot.
  1. What is between you and the shooter?  Do you have a clear shot?  Are there people running between you and the bad guy?
  2. What is behind the target?  Are there people running behind the bad guy?
  3. Have you practiced drawing and shooting with the handgun concealed?
  4. Have you practiced drawing and shooting under stress?
  5. Have you practiced shooting on the move?
  6. Have you practiced shooting at a moving target?
If you are going to carry a gun you need to take tactical handgun classes PERIOD!!!  Standing in a gun range, shooting at a paper target with no stress will not prepare you for a gunfight.  You would be better off running or going hands on.  I am amazed at the amount of people that get there carry permit and never train.  With that being said most police officers are not trained well either.  As a former SWAT team member we trained often shooting on the move, running from cover to cover and shooting, shooting around barricades, and shooting from different potions.  Look in your area for a reputable range that teaches tactical handgun.  If you cannot find one close, travel as far as you need to for the classes.

Steve Swinford is a 17 year law enforcement veteran.  He was a member of the Moore SWAT team, he is a trained sniper, Police Defensive Tactics Instructor, Taser Instructor and has trained in martial arts for over 30 years.  He has fired his handgun in the line of duty and understands the difficulty in shooting under stress.

If you are interested in having him a guest speaker at your business or organization, he can be reached at www.normankarate.com and click on the contact us page.  Or you can email him directly at steveswinford@cox.net.  Steve Swinford has articles weekly on a a variety of topics.  Upcoming topics include, Back To School With ADD and Back To School Safely (a guide to preventing child abductions)  You can subscribe to his blog to receive this articles.
















































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