Page 6 - TPA Journal November December 2023

incident. A hostage incident typically begins with a threat of violence – a robbery, a confrontation with
someone with whom the hostage-taker has a disagreement, or to prevent apprehension by law enforce-
ment. Although threats will be made, and firearms may be present, typically no victim or victims are shot
randomly. These incidents typically occur in private residences, or commercial businesses (with robbery
as a motive). Hostage-taking is a means to protect the hostage-taker. If a victim is shot, it is usually in a
scenario in which the hostage-taker shoots in “self-defense,” and other hostages are unharmed.

Contrast the beginning of a hostage situation with the beginning of an active shooter inci-
dent. The active shooter is armed and enters a location looking for victims. As innocent victims are
encountered, they are shot at random. In some cases, the active shooter may seek out specific individu-
als (as in workplace violence mass shootings), but the subject makes clear by behavior the subject’s intent
to shoot and kill individuals at random.

If an incident begins as an active shooter incident, law enforcement should have very good and
clear evidence that the situation has changed to a hostage incident before abandoning our time-critical
response to an active shooter. The active shooter/mass shooter demonstrates his or her intent from the
outset. Unless there is clear evidence that their intent has changed, we should proceed on the basis that
more shooting will take place unless we immediately intervene. The author is not aware of an active
shooter incident that actually became a negotiable hostage situation.

One caveat: if the active shooter has no more potential victims and wants to negotiate or is con-
tained by law enforcement, we should negotiate. At that point, don’t risk any first responders’ lives going
to the suspect; have the suspect exit and surrender to you.

With school systems constantly improving their physical security by locking doors and strength-
ening doors to prevent unauthorized entry, they are no doubt making their students safer. At the same
time, schools are making it more difficult for law enforcement to reach them in active shooter lock
downs. Law enforcement can encounter the same difficulties reaching victims and active shooters in
other venues, such as businesses. We need to equip our law enforcement first responders with breaching
equipment.

Some school classroom doors are either metal or solid wood doors. The door frame is sometimes
metal. With a sturdy lock, these doors are impossible for officers to breach without a key or some sort of
breaching tool. The inability to quickly enter a classroom or other area where an active shooter is means
more victims and delay in providing life-saving first aid to those victims. Law enforcement should deter-
mine the types of doors they might have to breach, and find suitable tools to accomplish a quick entry.
Law enforcement agencies have done a good job equipping law enforcement first responders with the
rifles and first aid equipment they need; now the next step is giving them mechanical breaching tools to
rapidly get through locked doors.

2 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • (512) 458-3140 Texas Police Journal