The Elephant in the Room

The elephant in the room is a metaphorical idiom for an important or enormous topic or controversial issue that is obvious, but no one wants to discuss this because it makes some of them uncomfortable. In Aprill of 1999, the attack at Columbine High School shocked the country and forever changed policy and training for both law enforcement and civilians. But has our training kept up with our policy? Let’s talk about the civilian response:

First, let’s go way back to the 1980’s, where drive-by shootings and gang violence were running rampant in Los Angeles, California. In 1985, Los Angeles schools developed a plan to deal with potential drive-by shootings. If they were alerted to possible gang activity in the area, they would lock the doors because of the outside threat, get the kids away from doors and windows and low to the floor because of stary bullets, close the blinds or drapes in the event of broken glass, and turn out the lights so no one could see inside the classrooms from the outside. These were called DBS (Drive-by Shooting) drills. Several schools jumped on the bandwagon and said, “this is a good idea, in the event of a shooting, we could do this.” Columbine Highschool was one of these schools.Of the 13 people killed at Columbine, 11 were in the library. The school was built on a hill, so the library, which was on the second floor, had an outside exit door. Students that were hiding in the library asked if they could just leave; they were told to get down and get their heads under the tables. They waited for 4 minutes and 10 seconds before the killers entered the library and began shooting. They all had ample time to escape, but they were told to stay…after all, that was the policy. Every school in the country watched in horror as the shooting at Columbine unfolded and they all thought “we need a plan.” So, they adopted the same plan that Columbine used! We entered the age of lockdown. Sometimes having a plan and having a plan that works are two different things.

In 2007 the VA Tech shooting happened and again, there was a lockdown.2008 Homeland Security released the document Active Shooter how to respond. They state, "lockdown is no longer enough", "multiple response options are needed", "those in harm’s way should make their own decision", "get out, hide out, take out", run, hide, fight" Still, many schools continued doing lock-down drills; why? Because it’s easy, it’s accountable, it’s one word. And then, in 2012, Sandy Hook happened. In 2013 the US Department of Education teamed up with Homeland Security, FEMA, FBI, US Dept. of Justice, and the US Dept. of Health and Human Services and released the document Guide for Developing High-Quality School Emergency Operation Plans. In this document, that was sent to every school district in 2013, they state "lock-down is no longer enough", "multiple response options are needed", "those in harm’s way should make their own decision. "However, it was a recommendation and not a mandate, so guess what we’re still doing 10 years later. What’s the definition of insanity? But we’re training our law enforcement to come save the day; that should be enough… right? Do you know why we have fire extinguishers, fire exits, fire safety training, and fire drills? These are tools to buy time, because the fire department cannot get there fast enough. Do you know why we do first aid training, CPR/AED training, and have first aid kits and AED’s? These are tools to buy time, because EMS cannot get there fast enough. NO first responder can get there fast enough. Civilians need a set of “tools” in place in order to buy time for law enforcement.

These “tools” are a combination of proper training (the federal standard broken down and explained properly), technology, and tools. If you are missing one component, you increase your potential for failure exponentially. Seek out training and keep an open mind. And don’t assume that the law enforcement agency in your jurisdiction has the right answers; I’ve seen a lot of agencies “train” their schools to be locked down and terrified, while they have people pretending to bodies in the hallways while they unleash a barrage of blank rounds, in order to “inoculate teachers to gunfire.” Teachers and staff need to be properly trained and given the authority to make decisions. They should leave the training feeling empowered and safe, not terrified. Do some research and at the very least, meet the federal recommendations and don’t solely rely on technology and gadgets. But then again, it’ll never happen here…until it does.About The Author Robert Tirollo is an active police officer with over 20 years law enforcement experience and currently trains law enforcement officers and civilians nationwide. Rob specializes in Active Shooter Solo Response Tactics for Law Enforcement, Civilian Active Shooter Response, Close Quarters Lethal Threats, Counter-ambush Tactics, and various forms of armed and unarmed combat. Rob is one of the top active shooter response trainers in the United States. He can be reached at Blueshieldtactical.com