No offense, but this sounds like a terrible idea. For one, the “man down” would be a lie and a waste of the EMS’s time.
If there is trouble, wouldn’t it be a bad idea to send in guys without firearms too?
LEOs are the first line of defense for a couple of reasons:
- they are often the closest, whereas fire/rescue are usually "on station" and typically have a longer response time
- LEOs are armed, and (despite all the jokes and hype) come prepared for the worse case scenario. In fact, most any medical response team will NOT engage a subject until first cleared by the cops, if the condition of the subject is unknown and/or potentially dangerous in any way
Examples of how this typically would play out ...
1) your co-worker drops to the floor in an apparent heart-attack
- you call 911; the dispatcher gets the dets and sends out the medical response unit (paramedics typically)
- the LEOs may also become aware of the call if they monitor the medical calls on their computers and so they may roll to the call and actually get there first and start CPR or use a defibulator until higher-trained paramedics show up
In this scenario, there's no reason to suspect any danger to the responders, and so the medical team will roll up and immediately start to work.
2) you see a man lying on the sidewalk, apparently passed out
- you call 911; the dispatcher gets the dets and sends out both LEOs and paramedics
- the LEOs are likely to ge there first and will assess the safety of the scene BEFORE dealing with the unconscious person
- if the paramedics get there first, they won't even approach the subject until the cops clear the scene for safety
In this scenario, there's doubt as to what caused the man to be down and he (or the surrounding ares) could be dangerous to the responders, so cops first clear the scene to be safe for other responders. Sadly, it's not unheard of nowadays to "swat" responders and/or see the scene become unsafe even for paramedics, some of which actually wear body armor for their own safety.
When you call the dispatcher (either 911 or non-emergency) one of the first questions you're going to hear is "What's the nature of your emergency call?" (or something to that effect). Is it a fire? The the FD gets the call first. Bleeding victim of nasty fall? Paramedics get the call first. Etc. However ... it's not uncommon that cops get on scene first regardless of the nature of the call, simply because of their proximity to the scene, if the cops monitor the FD and medical calls on their in-car computer.
