U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- We saw two young men kill innocent people this last month. We’ve seen mass murder before. Determined men and women studied the murder of innocent victims. It isn’t easy to look death in the face but it is dangerous to look away and pretend it couldn’t happen again. Any responsible adult should be haunted by what we could have done and yet chose not to do. These are a few of the lessons we learned from mass murders in the US and around the world.
We learned that time is critical. The mass murderer will kill several people during the first minute. Then, the attack slows down as victims run for cover and become harder to kill. The exception is if the murderer can trap his victims where he is unopposed and can kill at will.
The sooner we stop him the better. Every second counts.
It takes too long for the police to arrive. The first responders are those individuals in the building who are armed and trained to respond to a lethal threat. It doesn’t matter if it is a school, a church, or an office building, no one can order these volunteers to leave their office or classroom but most of them will go to help. They decided to move toward the sound of gunfire. They probably reached that decision as they were working through a training exercise on a weekend. There are no sure outcomes, but they could not let the children and colleagues in the next classroom be murdered while they sat still. They made that choice long before they heard the sounds of gunfire and alarms.
When they hear an attack, the responders remind their students where to hide. The responders grab a medical kit and go. Their door is already locked and they hear the door lock behind them as they step into the hallway.
The first responders see a stranger with a gun in his hand shooting down the hallway and then shooting into a classroom. The first responders present, aim, and fire until the stranger is down. Other responders come around the corner. They secure the attacker’s firearm.
The attacker is down but the emergency isn’t over. There is lots of work to do. Responders begin to summon help and to treat the injured. Many school staff converge on the wounded and work to stop the bleeding. They move the injured toward the Emergency Medical Services who are already on their way. The scene is strangely like the practice drills except the blood, the tears, and the crying are real this time.
The police will be there in about 5 minutes. The first law enforcement units to arrive form into a team and move into the building. The rule is to grab someone and go inside. Some of the arriving officers have trained with the school staff before. They know the layout of the school and where the identified attacker is located. They know that the first attacker is down.
The police and EMTs sweep through the school. The police are looking for other attackers. Emergency Medical Services move right behind them and take over treatment and transportation of the injured as the police advance.
Injured victims who can walk are directed toward the arriving EMS units outside. Some of the wounded are carried toward the parking lot so they can be transported while the rest of the building is still being searched and secured.
That is what best practice looks like. I can only tell you what the practice drills feel like because I’ve never felt the real thing. Even the practice exercises tear at your heart. That is why everyone trains so hard so that the real thing never happens.
Law enforcement and emergency medical organizations change slowly, but we’ve known best practice for decades. If your school, your church, your law enforcement, and your emergency medical services are not training this way then you need to know why. You need to ask them about their safety plan.
Who decided to ignore best practice? If your schools, church, and office don’t train like this then they are betting the lives of innocent people that a murderer will strike somewhere else. Who decided that their life wasn’t worth saving? You have the right to ask and to expect an answer.
If the school principal doesn’t have the right answers then replace the school principal. If the school board doesn’t have the right answers then replace the school board. Consider moving your children to another school. Ask the Sheriff and chief of police also, and replace the Sheriff and the Mayor if you have to. People don’t like to change but asking questions today lets us save lives tomorrow.
Grab someone and go forward.
About Rob Morse
The original article with references is posted here. Rob Morse writes about gun rights at Ammoland, at Clash Daily, at Second Call Defense, and on his SlowFacts blog. He hosts the Self Defense Gun Stories Podcast and co-hosts the Polite Society Podcast. Rob was an NRA pistol instructor and combat handgun competitor.
I will ask one question …WHAT was it that STOPPED the shooter ?
So now you have the answer to all the other questions.
I know it is off topic “BUT” how many here are mayflower descendants?
That is kind of out of the blue? What brings that up?
curiosity, My family has had someone who fought in every war that formed this country until now , there were soldiers in ww2 that were mexican and other nationals who fought under our flag who were never citizens and were not granted it unless they applied , the rules matter but sometimes peoples sacrifices for the greater good go unrecognized my family is from the mayflower,and the speedwell ,or they were here, I think it makes my point of view narrow sometimes puritanical …or it is just old age creeping up I will admit I am old when I am… Read more »
what started the thought is getting medals out of a drawer for tomorrow ,, mine moms dads my brother grandfather and you get the picture in the pile with the purple hearts two medals of honer one un opened the other from the civil war …who we are
Lots of folks with Hispanic names got medals in Vietnam. No “Latinxes” did, however. LOL
Downvoters are racists.
swmft…One side of my family was here before that !
Congress spends trillions of Taxpayer dollars on frivolous BS legislation like Gender Studies in Pakistan, but has any money been spent to Harden our schools against Armed Intruders? Very little if any.
That any unauthorized person can gain entry into a school is unacceptable. How about we spend some shekels making sure some armed Whackadoodle can’t even get in the school. That’s Common Sense!
Sometimes I think that Congress spends in that frivolous way just to keep us concentrated on earning a living, rather than watching them.
chopping off their fingers when they stick them in the cookie jar
we need to have 4h and rotc even cmp in all the schools and teachers who can shoot make them such an unattractive target that even Russian army would bypass them time to change up to real citizen soldiers Conscientious objectorsget taught triage
Surgeon Talk… Five surgeons were talking about the best patients… First surgeon says, “Accountants are the best to operate on because when you open them up, everything on the inside is numbered.” Second surgeon says, “Nah – librarians are the best. Everything inside them is in alphabetical order.” Third surgeon responds, “Try electricians, man! Everything inside them is color coded!” Fourth surgeon intercedes,” I prefer lawyers.They’re heartless, spineless, gutless, and their heads and butts are interchangeable.” To which the fifth surgeon, who has been quietly listening to the conversation, says, “I like engineers. They always understand when you have a… Read more »
it is to remember the medals of valor,purple hearts and stars,and those lost physically or mentally defending our rights and the rights of others, on this day I fly the flags my family fought under ,and remember the gift of freedom they fought for, they moved from a known world to a wilderness to be free, when the tyrant came a calling they chose to fight rather than submit…my guns defend my rights
Hmm? How about teachers not propping security doors open to let killers arrive invited? We had such doors at my employment but they were alarmed if opened to the entire office emergency alarm system.
beafrank…Great point . Why would a teacher prop open a locked security door. And I read where the SRO was off site and had to rush back to the school after he heard about the shooting .
The district has SIX “SROs”. All were useless as six teats on a dude. There is no substitute for armed-trained teachers & staff.
There is no damn way it should be difficult to secure these schools and protect those kids, teachers and staff during school hours. Leaving doors unlocked ,lack of alarms and high quality video won’t do it. The fact that this school was a “gun free zone” sure didn’t seem to be a deterrent to this son of a bitch did it ? Gun free zones have to go.
Probably because she’s an untrained union moron who can’t be fired.
No other “security” can adequately substitute for armed & trained teachers & staff.
Things like securing doors at schools and taking all other precautions needed to protect our kids ,teachers and staff during school hours would be refreshing. I think schools might have to start being locked down similar to prisons with most the same type ID verification, appointments and clearances needed to enter. If it’s come down to that then do it. This has to stop.
Ope …compare the way schools are handled to how the TSA handles airports . What could possibly go wrong ?
Ope …Do they still use Air Marshals on board planes ? Maybe they need to send SRO’s to Air Marshal school . Question In a Gun Free Zone are SRO’s armed ?
Our side needs to stop pussyfooting, ban “gun free” zones, arm & train teachers & staff.
USA’s bankrupt, >30% inflation, yet we focus on hiring a million SROs at a ~$100B/yr, not low-cost 2A solutions.
Only reason for air marshals: Pilots were disarmed; still mostly are. Rather than arm’em, which Bush sabotaged, he blew 10s of $Bs on AMs for a kind of attack that’d never happen again, as pilots now knew they were suicide Jihadis & would never let’em in the cockpit (negative Gs etc).
What good’s “TSA” probing when illegals & Jihadi sleepers work in Mx? Expensive placebo
beafrank…Another good point . Why even at Walmart all doors except main entry doors are alarmed when opened !
Lot of good that did at the El Cielo Walmart in El Paso, Texas. Walmart wasn’t technically a “gun free” zone, just practically “gun free” since it’s half-surrounded by privately-decreed “gun free” El Cielo Mall.
Well said Sir. The main lesson learned, at terrible cost, this past week is YOU DON’T WAIT, YOU GO IN AND NEUTRALIZE THE THREAT. There is also the issue that had either or both of the teachers in that classroom been a ARMED AND WILLING TO ENGAGE the threat things would have been different and there would have been less loss of life, maybe no loss of life. I run a security detail at a local Church. It’s a sad thing this is needed. We do qualify yearly. I go over tactics on an individual basis. Everyone knows how to… Read more »
“Cop or no cop, if someone is shooting kids and you got a weapon in your hands, you need to go get in a gunfight. Maybe you win and maybe you lose. But you gotta go get in a gunfight.” -Jesse Kelly
“If the cops really just stood outside knowing someone was inside that school killing kids, man. Not sure how you could live with yourself. I don’t wanna hear “training” and “protocols” either. Barf.” -Jesse Kelly
Ban “Gun Free” Zones.
100% agree. If you are carrying you should engage and stop the bad guy. Sadly, yes, the cops waited in the hallway just outside the classroom and didn’t go in for nearly an hour. It’s one thing if you don’t have the ability, it’s criminal if you have the ability and do nothing. An hour is a loooooong time to bleed out.
Arm up and carry on
correct
One word: Ma-alot.
Complacency (getting in a rut) is our greatest enemy and far too easy to devolve into. Admittedly it is hard to maintain eternal vigilance but do we dare to let our guard down. After all, one single lapse (propping open a door for example) can have disastrous results.
Good memory! I forgot about Ma’alot. Didn’t that lead to arming teachers & staff?
Downvoters are coward Oathbreakers.
I want to commend Rob for this article. Previously, I recall him writing that we know how to stop these attacks, and I commented that I had not learned what that way was, after having read the article. This time, he treated us to a good example of a strategic scenario, obviously open to many fine details and tactical variations at many points. I appreciate the clarity. Also, the scenario given does not take the outcomes lightly, as if there were a silver bullet for all this. Here, of course, the topic is response to active attack. Another entire, quite… Read more »
On site defenders are essential, both to respond immediately and to do what the police so often won’t do: address the needs of the moment.
A mass shooting perpetrator should be taken out. It should be a “Take-no- prisoners situation. I don’t care why he did it, it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is he/she is dead. “Suicide by Cop” is fine with me, saves court costs and free room and board.
One point I think you are missing is that the vast majority of school teachers are democrats and they don’t like guns or the people who own them.
I didn’t say all teachers, the teachers who didn’t have a problem with firearms should be the one’s who received the proper training.
You have to help yourself before others will help you, especially when seconds count and the police are minutes away.
Did you read this article or others on protector-teacher training? Many teachers who do not care for guns are very willing to learn and stand up to protect their students. At least 20% of teachers say they’ll try, compared to maybe 10% of all adults getting licensed to carry.
People will do whatever it takes when it is necessary and teachers see the necessity.
Hmmm, ok … I hope that you are right.
Maybe it was Cali., but when I retired as a big city cop, most of the teachers I dealt with were not about to do anything that involved violence, I tried to be a substitute teacher for six months before I decided that most teachers and students were not the people I wanted to be around. Executive protection was easier and paid better. I was ignored in the lunchroom and even the SRO thought I was paranoid.
The attacker is now in the emergency room ? sorry Rob not one of your best articles. The Biden administration Merrick Garland has classified mothers and fathers domestic terrorist who question their school boards while the FBI investigates those parents. Those who have stated as minors that they intended to commit such a violent act as shooting fellow students have their records sealed by liberal judges who fail to make sure that these mentally disturbed never are allowed to legally purchase a firearm. This discussion on the disturbed youth of America or for that matter any person that stated they… Read more »
weather funded or de funded police are mostly useless in mass shootings they arrive after the carnage is over , and when they have resource officers , two like parkland that worked out well’ no it is time we take back protecting ourselves and families and the police can solve crimes and disputes
Today we all survive in a different environment depending on which party is controlling the local municipality. I agree the police are now defined differently do the pressure from the progressive in the democratic party.
Their role is to investigate now only doing what they deem political correct. Sad that criminals now have the upper hand do to the courts not the police.
Today think positive protect yourself and family, beware always
Think positively about quietly selling your in town home and move away from cities and their police forces.
There are variables that continue to have us call this home, I live in small town america folks are wonderful for the most part.
Thank you
OK
the courts that protect criminals as under privileged will attack anyone they deem as to be not one of theirs , conservative protecting their home is a criminal ,where a mob trying to burn it down are just practicing free speech
Those judges are appointed and confirmed by marxist socialist democrat libtards. Quietly sell the house, and move to where those people are unable to live … rural areas.
Yes that is true I still Live with the good old boys which is changing. The big cities are ready to explode more & more are moving to where I live from the north those that welcomed my family years ago are not happy nor am I.
Jimmy Carter first coined the term ‘first responder.’ He did our nation a great service by that simple statement. Cops, EMT’s, Fire and the coroner are second responders at best. The true definition of a first responder is an armed citizen with a gun and a trauma kit and the proper training and mental attitude to employ both in an emergency.
I never thought Carter did anything that would be considered a great service to our country.
built houses for the working poor habitat for humanity , only good thing he did
his presidency was worse than a train wreak
He did the house building AFTER he was the third worst president in my lifetime. Perhaps he is trying to do some sort of penance?
I think his mom put him up to it with the billy is the brains of the family remark
As much as I did not like him and thought he was an idiot, I wish he were our president now if I had a choice of moron presidents to run our country since I can’t have the person that really won in office.
I sure agree with that. At least President Carter would never had tried to intentionally destroy our country.
Ope – that is a really scary thought – can you imagine how much more damage he could have done had he tried to?
Yep,the peanut farmer did enough damage without even trying. Every time I saw Carter on the news back then he was laughing and partying with Begin and Sadat at the WH. That ME Peace Accord thing took his focus of the country I think.
Off not of.
The Iran hostage thing was another problem he had although I don’t put that all on him.
Not all, but never woulda happened if he hadn’t taken the Shah out. Why do our dumbass leaders sabotage bad rulers, yielding far worse rulers?
China (“Chiang was corrupt & mean”)
Vietnam (Diem)
Iran
Iraq: False claim of WMDs & training Jihadis. Saddam was no threat after Gulf War, Christians in cabinet, stood on the necks of Jihadis. Bush enabled the rise of ISIS, murder of 100s of 1000s of Christians, end of their towns that had survived 2k yrs there.
Egypt
Libya
Syria (almost, still itching to)
Ukraine (Yanukovych)
Others?
Probably because we keep calling them, “LEADERS”, when in fact they are NOT!
Whoever thought Carter would be the good ol’ days.
My biggest beef is not with the commies, but Republiquislings who collaborated when they were in power instead of taking turf, betraying us from within our own tent.
running toward the sound of gunfire smell of smoke or bang of an accident , I think there are some people hard wired to protect others like an Australian shepherd fear says run and your brain says hell no save as many as you can
That is known as the rescuer mindset. Lots of way smarter folks than I am have waxed philosophically on the topic so I can’t likely add to their wisdom. What I will say is that it is likely to some extent ‘hard wired’ into their psyche and reinforced by training and circumstances. Some might also refer to it as the ‘protector’ as well. Those few have always been present thru history – Horatio at the gate 😉
They are called MILITARY VETERANS.
I can’t imagine Jimmie ever thinking of an armed teacher as a first responder. Having lived thru the Carter regime, I have trouble remembering anything good from that era
The good is only relative to today.
he only had 1 term the only good I could come up with
Brother Billy pissed on a wall in an airport and produced BILLY BEER.
In other words, “Properly combat trained Military Infantry and / or Veterans of, OR Combat Veterans” which makes ALL the world of COMMON SENSE and should have been the protocols all along. In the matter of schools, WHY have they not removed the idiotic, “Gun Free Zone” BS and put true security doors and windows on these schools as a deterrent? Having 100 cops standing around outside of a school for an hour, waiting on all their military vehicles and equipment to arrive is NOT an even intelligent solution. MILITARY INFANTRY TRAINED VETERANS, BREACHERS, (SP?) ARMED AND READY, ON CALL… Read more »
Number 1…Lock the Damn Doors….
That’s Number 3.
1) Ban “Gun Free” zones
2) arm & train teachers & staff.
4) If you have a “Resource Officer”, leave one door posted “unlocked”, with him on the inside, weapon drawn.
go back to constitutional carry nationally, the number of criminals and nut jobs would fall exponentially, drug dealers would all live in same neighborhood no street corner gangs would look more like guardian angles as robbing and threatening would get them shot dead , shot in back running away after stealing a purse goooood one less!
There are some unfortunate circumstances with your last sentence. Unfortunately, allot of women carry their gun in the purse so she wouldn’t have anything to shoot them with. The biggest problem however is that if you shoot someone in the back it would land you in jail because the perp was not posing a threat. If they died, then you could be brought up on murder charges. The fact that they were committing a crime has nothing to do with it because the laws are made to PROTECT the CRIMINAL not the innocent. I am in agreement with your last… Read more »
There is a presumption in law that property is not as valuable as human life. That is a modern progressive notion and if we could get that changed back it would solve a lot. Our progenitors knew that to steal one’s property is to negate some of the limited time on earth that we have spent obtaining that property. And they also knew that a thief voluntarily diminishes the value of his status and value among his fellow human beings. If we could change that presumption of human value back to what it used to be, then you could shot… Read more »
on that line of thought illegal immigrants could never convey citizenship to their children
Explain please.
if we go back to how the term natural born was defined before i believe 1967 one parent had to be a us citizen for the child to be one, a resident alien would convey that status on their child , there were some ww2 vets that got in trouble for voting because they were foreign nationals and did not know I remember one was deported to a country in which he never lived there was a presidential pardon and all manner of bs
your answer is waiting approval, should copy and past it a few times drive them crazy
Sadly, society doesn’t consider that while not a current threat he was a future threat & inflationary waste of space
that is about how i look at it
True. To make Con Carry really work, we have to ban “gun free” zones, including privately decreed ones in businesses open to the public, like El Cielo Mall. “Gun Free” zones threaten public safety in public places. The private property argument leaks like a sieve, analogous to a café claiming a right to serve rancid grease & E.coli.
or rat steaks and cat or dog meat
That is right. Have worked in school districts for well over 20 years and convenance seems to be the issue. Even teachers get complacent with this and place objects and doors to prevent them from locking behind them. Parents too have an issue with the inconvenience of a locked door in front of them and complain. Even well educated, well-to-do, parents get a “it will never happen here” mind set.
lock the damn Door and gates.