dnewton3
Staff member
https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/23/us/florida-school-shooting/index.html
http://fox59.com/2018/02/22/resource-off...d-sheriff-says/
Before we arm-chair this guy into a cell, we should wait for more info to come out. But at face value, I'd say he's not what he should have been.
Most any LEO agencies train that active shooter situations call for IMMEDIATE involvement. No agency can demand that their officers die in the line of duty. But we are, as a generalization, officers that would rather act than not act, to preserve life. Our training would be to "engage" the shooter. That could mean anything from killing him, to distracting him, to challenging him, to trading shots with him, to boxing him into a room, etc. Anything that takes the shooter's attention away from unarmed civilians is a good thing. As an officer with a vest and a gun, I have a better chance of survival than do the unarmed, unsecured masses. So while the death toll may not have been zero, it may also not have been 17 either had the officer engaged Cruz. If he had engaged, perhaps the shooter would have stopped and given up? Shot himself? Ran away? We cannot say how it would have happened for sure, but it is VERY LIKELY that a different outcome would have been presented had the deputy intervened, and likely far less lives would have been lost. The shooting lasting 6 minutes; the deputy did nothing for 4 minutes while on scene. I am willing to offer conjecture that fewer than 17 people would be dead; perhaps far fewer.
Loss of life is tragic. I've seen it countless ways over my 23 years of LEO. But, let's tally the failures of the "system" here ...
- FBI does not properly investigate the potential of threats, not communicate those to local agencies that might have taken it more seriously.
- Local agency has multiple contacts with the subject for a few year prior; many domestic issues, reports of life threats, etc. He's never brought up on charges that we're aware of at this point.
- Local school resource officer (fully sworn, armed deputy in uniform) present at the shooting does zilch for 4 minutes while the carnage takes place.
If we're going to talk reform, let's take a BIG PICTURE view of this.
The whole topic of "See something; Say something" really only works if law enforcement takes it seriously.
http://fox59.com/2018/02/22/resource-off...d-sheriff-says/
Before we arm-chair this guy into a cell, we should wait for more info to come out. But at face value, I'd say he's not what he should have been.
Most any LEO agencies train that active shooter situations call for IMMEDIATE involvement. No agency can demand that their officers die in the line of duty. But we are, as a generalization, officers that would rather act than not act, to preserve life. Our training would be to "engage" the shooter. That could mean anything from killing him, to distracting him, to challenging him, to trading shots with him, to boxing him into a room, etc. Anything that takes the shooter's attention away from unarmed civilians is a good thing. As an officer with a vest and a gun, I have a better chance of survival than do the unarmed, unsecured masses. So while the death toll may not have been zero, it may also not have been 17 either had the officer engaged Cruz. If he had engaged, perhaps the shooter would have stopped and given up? Shot himself? Ran away? We cannot say how it would have happened for sure, but it is VERY LIKELY that a different outcome would have been presented had the deputy intervened, and likely far less lives would have been lost. The shooting lasting 6 minutes; the deputy did nothing for 4 minutes while on scene. I am willing to offer conjecture that fewer than 17 people would be dead; perhaps far fewer.
Loss of life is tragic. I've seen it countless ways over my 23 years of LEO. But, let's tally the failures of the "system" here ...
- FBI does not properly investigate the potential of threats, not communicate those to local agencies that might have taken it more seriously.
- Local agency has multiple contacts with the subject for a few year prior; many domestic issues, reports of life threats, etc. He's never brought up on charges that we're aware of at this point.
- Local school resource officer (fully sworn, armed deputy in uniform) present at the shooting does zilch for 4 minutes while the carnage takes place.
If we're going to talk reform, let's take a BIG PICTURE view of this.
The whole topic of "See something; Say something" really only works if law enforcement takes it seriously.