ACTIVE SHOOTER

An active shooter is a situation in which an individual or more that one person is actively engaged in shooting at other people with a firearm in a workplace or public place.  It may be a handgun, shotgun, assault rifle or any other firearm.  Home invasion does not generally fall into the active shooter category, not because there is less danger, but rather, because your response will be different.  A distinction I would gladly debate else ware.  Suffice it to say, that both scenarios are extremely dangerous and require specific actions,

Like any other emergency or disaster scenario, your safety and the safety of your family should be your top priority.  Also, like other emergencies, some prior planning and preparation can make all the difference in the world.

At the workplace:

1.     Find out if your employer has an active shooter plan.  If so, ask for training and drills to be performed.

2.     If your employer does not have a plan, ask for one to be developed.

3.    Be aware of all the entrance and exits from your building. If an active shooter was in your building, what's the fastest way out? Can you help people along the way?

4.     Find good hiding places before an active shooter event occurs so you don’t have to search for one under stress.

Personal Preparedness:

1.     Practice situational awareness.  You can find training techniques in the “Tips and Training” section of this website.

2.     Consider getting some active shooter training.

3.    Make an Active Shooter Plan with your family:

·         Make sure that everyone understands what to do during an active shooter event.

·         Make a meeting place if you get separated. This could be “always meet at the car unless first responders tell you otherwise.”

·        Practice situational awareness with your family.  You can make it into a game to help them with training.  Make sure they always know the two nearest exits if they have to run.  In malls, sometimes the nearest exit is through a store and to the back.

4.    Learn the difference between cover and concealment:

·         Cover offers protection from gunshots such as behind a concrete planter or other obstacle that a bullet cannot penetrate. In most cases cover is also concealment unless the shooter has a way of seeing you.

·         Concealment only offers protection from being seen such as hiding behind landscaping, sheet rock walls and other obstacles that do not provide protection from firearms.

5.    Get some martial arts training.

6.     Consider getting some first aid training that covers trauma.

7.    Find out if your area has text-to-911.

8.     Spend some time in self-reflection considering if you could hurt or even kill someone that was randomly shooting and killing people.  Some people never think about this, but these are the types of things that should be considered long before a violent event happens to you. 

During an Active Shooter Event:

An active shooter event is very fluid, and things tend to happen very quickly.  Your first reaction may be to freeze.  This is a natural response and is a human instinct left over from when we were forced to hide or protect ourselves from predators, but it isn’t a very good response during an active shooter scenario.  Martial arts training will help you get past this instinct so you can follow the three recommended responses; run, hide or fight.

If you are armed, you may be inclined to think that engaging the shooter is the right thing to do.  However, there are only a few situations when engaging the shooter should be attempted.  It doesn’t matter how well trained you are.  I’ll explain:

·        If you are engaged in a shootout with the active shooter, you may (probably will) be mistakenly identified as the suspect and shot by police.  This type of mistaken identity has been responsible for numerous deaths from friendly fire over the years. There is simply no way for first responders to know that you are a friendly and not the suspect. They don’t need to be focusing their attention on you while the shooter(s) continues their carnage.

·         You stand a good chance of killing or injuring an innocent bystander.  Imagine that you are under the stress of a live fire incident and the shooter is aiming his weapon at you.  There are people screaming and running everywhere.  You raise your weapon and begin to fire rapidly.  How many times do you think you will hit him and how many rounds will miss to land who knows where?  Remember, he has the advantage because he doesn’t care where his bullets land and you might hesitate because of fear of killing the wrong person.

·        What happens to your family while you’re busy with the shooter?  What if there’s more than one shooter?  Who will protect them?

·         It may be more useful to keep your firearm concealed unless you absolutely have to use it.  Even then, you should be concerned about mistaken identity.

·        This is not to say that if you can legally conceal carry and you have sufficient training, that you shouldn’t be armed.  But, if you are trained, you already know the risks of engaging in a firefight with innocent bystanders present.

Run and Escape:

Getting away should be your top priority:

1.     Don’t try to take your belongings. Drop everything and go to the nearest exit.

2.     Stay low and try to stay out of eyeshot of the shooter.

3.    Try to help others but if they don’t want to evacuate, take your family and go anyway.

4.     Try to warn others to stay away from the area.

5.     Call 911 only when it is safe to do so.

6.     Do not scream and point at police or otherwise distract them. 

7.     If you encounter police, keep your hands visible and follow instructions.  They need to make sure that you aren’t the shooter so don’t be offended if they push you and search you.  Try your best to remain calm.

8.     When you are away from the area you can offer information to police that are not actively engaging the shooter(s).  Be prepared to tell them how many shooters you saw, where they are, what they look like, what they are wearing and what kind of weapons they are using (if known).  Don’t speculate, just the facts.

Hide if you can’t escape:

If you can’t escape you will need to hide.

1.     Get out of sight as quickly as possible.  If the shooter can’t see you, he can’t shoot you but try to find a hiding place that provides cover as well as concealment.

2.     Once you find a hiding place, only move if you have to.  Movement attracts attention. Stay very quiet.

3.     Put all electronics on silent mode with no vibration.

4.     If you are in a different room than the shooter, lock or barricade the doors.  Close draperies or blinds and turn off the lights.

5.    Try not to hide in groups.  Try to stay spread out.

6.     Try to silently communicate with the police via text and/or social media.  Let them know where you are and any information you have.  Remember that you can’t send photos to text-to-911.  Keep your messages clear and don’t use emoji or shorthand abbreviations. 

7.     Stay hidden until law enforcement tells you it is safe to leave. 

Fight if you must:

If you can’t get away, you’re cornered, or you determine that you need to fight then do so with all of the conviction, commitment and violence that you can muster. This is where that self-reflection that I spoke of earlier comes in. Hopefully you have prepared yourself to do your worst.

1.     Use anything at your disposal for weapons. 

2.     Try to get others to help but be prepared for them not to.

3.     Your opponent’s weapons are only effective if he can target you.  If you can get close (very close) stay there and do your damage up close. Gouge eyes, bite, pull hair, strangle and anything else you can do to disable, disarm or kill if necessary. 

After the event:

Keep in mind that law enforcement will be very alert and vigilant and my treat you sternly.  This is not the time for pleasantries or manners.  They may still be searching for additional shooters or trying to determine if you are a bad guy. Don’t get offended and let them do their job.

1.     Always keep your hands visible and empty.

2.    If you are carrying a concealed firearm, make it known to law enforcement and DO NOT touch your weapon.

3.    Law enforcement may not immediately help the injured.  They may still be tasked with securing the scene and making sure that all shooters are naturalized. 

4.     Cooperate fully with law enforcement and follow their directions.

5.    If you are able, try to help others.  This might involve taking care of wounded until first responders arrive.

6.    You will probably suffer from symptoms of PTSD.  If so, seek professional treatment to help you cope with the long-term effects.