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Discussion » Questions » Current Events and News » The school resource officer did not go in during the FL shooting, h stayed outside the building the entire time. What should happen to him?
my2cents

The school resource officer did not go in during the FL shooting, h stayed outside the building the entire time. What should happen to him?

He has resigned.

Posted - February 23, 2018
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Responses


  • 7919
    I looked up a lot of articles on this when I saw your question- I really do love the critical look you're taking on this- you've been asking some really tough questions. 

    I'm hopeful we'll get more info on this too because there aren't enough details for me to have an opinion on this yet. On the one hand, we'd all like someone to be the hero, and we all want to know what went wrong so we can hold people accountable and try to ensure this doesn't happen again. 

    Now, we don't know why he was outside. He apparently arrived a few seconds after the shooting started and remained outside for four of the six minutes the shooting was happening. I would like to know what he was doing and what protocol was. Four minutes isn't long. Did he know the shooting was happening? Did protocol dictate he wait for backup? Was he radioing for backup? Was he coordinating the evacuation? Those things matter. Where should he have been to have been of the most use? We talk about this on airlines- you're supposed to put on your mask before you help anyone else. If there's only one cop there, and he doesn't know exactly what's happening and where a shooter is, if he's going in, he needs to be really strategic about what he does. Running in and playing the hero is stupid. He'd be no good to anyone if he went running in and got shot right away. I'm not saying this was a factor, but it could have been. Again, we're talking about a four-minute span.

    Equally, we don't know what this man was trained to do. School resource officers are more like liaisons between the schools and the police force. They spend their days trying to maximize safety, and deal with petty stuff like theft and vandalism. Maybe some little drug busts. They do a whole lot of paper pushing. I guess this particular guy also has a military background, but I think it was prior to the 1980s or maybe even the early 1980s. In order to respond properly in a crisis, you must have ongoing training. It's like CPR- you recertify every couple years in order to make sure you're fluid. Was this officer trained on what to do in situations like this? He wasn't even a street cop. He wasn't coming into contact with violent criminals. It's doubtful he's even pondered pulling his weapon on the job in years. If he was not trained by the department what to do in situations like this, and the training wasn't ongoing, I could not fault him for not responding correctly... that is, if indeed, going in was protocol. 

    I'm not surprised he resigned. Even if he did everything right, this will be a day that haunts him for the rest of his life. If he did something wrong, I think the worst that could happen to him is that he'd get fired. If he can't fulfill the job expectations, he shouldn't have the job. I don't think he would deserve punishment beyond that. However, schools and police departments should be looking at this with a critical eye to prevent recurrence. 
      February 23, 2018 9:12 AM MST
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  • 19942
    Very good reply, JA.  There are a lot of unknowns here and I applaud you not jumping to a conclusion. 
      February 23, 2018 10:01 AM MST
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  • 32700
    The Police chief did not defend him. He said "It made his stomache ache." That the officer was supposed to go in find the shooter and kill him.
    He was suspended before he resigned. I think I heard them say he is going to take retirement. So it was not protocol to wait for backup. (That is the point in having an officer at the school. To be on scene not to have to wait for police response it takes too long. The shootings usually last less than 5 mins. This one was no exception) They are not their to break up fights and/or direct traffic. They are there to protect the children. If they are not there for safety to protect the children, just for paper pushing etc....I as a tax payer
     do not want to pay for them. Waste of tax money. Just there to give the parents fake feeling of security.
    Yes, we are only talking about 4 mins but the entire shooting was also 4 mins. That means he was there at the start and stayed outside until the shooting stopped.  This post was edited by my2cents at February 23, 2018 12:58 PM MST
      February 23, 2018 10:47 AM MST
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  • 7919
    Putting an officer on leave after an incident like this is standard protocol. They do it virtually every time while the investigation is underway.

    I know what the police chief said. Again, that has nothing to do with protocol. He gave an emotional response, not a professional one.

    The role of the school resource officer was originally created to improve the image of police forces. Their roles are currently primarily to work as a liaison and to address criminal matters on campus as well as incidents involving students. That does not mean they have any kind of special crisis or firearms training. In fact, without regular crisis training, I would expect an officer to become "soft" in that area. We still do not know what protocol was, nor do we know what training this officer has had. 

    Here are a few links on why SROs were placed in schools and what their jobs usually entail...
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_resource_officer
    https://nasro.org/frequently-asked-questions/
    https://www.swanseail.org/2269/The-Role-of-a-School-Resource-Officer     
      February 23, 2018 1:08 PM MST
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  • 17404
    ...except it is usually with pay.  Not this time.
      February 23, 2018 2:24 PM MST
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  • 32700
    Everything I can find says after Columbine, officers are to go to the shooter to stop an "active shooter sitiuation" that protocol changed from securing permeter as first action to go to the shooter.

    According to the National As. Of School Resource Officers, which trains these officers, they are there to prevent school shootings. 
    Our report, “To Protect & Serve: The School Resource Officer and the Prevention of Violence in Schools,” provides valuable statistics that document the benefits of appropriately implemented school policing programs.
    This is page 9 and 10. Page specifically says they are expanding from shootings. 



    This post was edited by my2cents at February 23, 2018 3:39 PM MST
      February 23, 2018 3:36 PM MST
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  • 7919
    We're still not going to see eye to eye on this one, I think. Yes, they have a duty to help keep campuses safe, and yes, their presence may have increased due to campus shootings, but there is a huge difference between working on preventive measures and doing detective work and crisis/ active shooter response. To say an SRO should be hunting down an active shooter is a lot like saying a regular officer should be able to do the same job as a SWAT team member or a sniper. I think you well know that those three jobs are totally different. Unless an SRO has special active shooter training, he cannot be expected to handle active shooters. 

    I have read where the officer involved here told the union he thought he did his job by calling for backup and establishing a perimeter and that some teachers think he would have been killed and done no good if he had gone in. If he had not established the perimeter, would more people have gone inside, following him to his death? Is it possible he saved lives by keeping others at bay? Could he have effectively communicated with other officers about what was happening if he was inside in a shootout? These are questions we do not know the answers to. At this point, we cannot even be certain his actions didn't save lives. 

    IF it can be proven that THIS particular officer had special training to deal with active shooters on campus and IF it can be proven that THIS officer did not act on the training he was given, at that point, I will concede. If not, then we should be looking at getting these officers additional training, but there is no national program for this. It's handled on an individual level between schools/ districts and their local police forces. Before we throw this guy under the bus for not doing his job, I want to see some kind of documentation about his special training and proof he did not do what he was trained to do. 
      February 23, 2018 4:47 PM MST
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  • 7919
    I want to add one more thing. This doc is really good at explaining how active shooter situations are handled and mentions SROs. It says the policies vary and going in is not always the right call- especially solo.

    https://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Critical_Issues_Series/the%20police%20response%20to%20active%20shooter%20incidents%202014.pdf 
      February 23, 2018 5:16 PM MST
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  • 32700
    Yeah, we probably not gonna agree on this one. 
    I believe to become a SRO they must complete this training. But maybe he did not. But the establishing perimeter first is not protocol anymore and has not been since the 1990s. 
    Yes, it is preferable not to go solo but that is why they are there so someone is on scene who can fire back. They are the first officer on scene.  

    ......
    "You're going to the sound of the guns," he said. "The No. 1 goal is to interdict the shooter or shooters. In the old days, you took land. You went in. You clear the room. Then you slowly and methodically move to clear the next room. In this instance ... get to the shooter as quickly as possible and that's what they clearly did here."
    (This was interviewed before it was know the SRO stayed outside)
    The tactic, known in law enforcement circles as rapid deployment involving the first officer at the scene, began in earnest after the Columbine shooting.

    https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/15/us/florida-school-shooting-columbine-lessons/index.html
      February 23, 2018 6:25 PM MST
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  • 32700
    Did you see the latest? There were 4 deputies in all who did not go in after the shooter. The police department says they were by their cars. But two other deputies did go in with the police officers.
    The more I learn about this situation the more I get angry. Just too many people not doing their jobs.
      February 24, 2018 3:47 PM MST
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  • 7280
    I agree with your first paragraph definitely---I too like this approach of doing research before posting answers on here.
      February 23, 2018 2:39 PM MST
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  • 2217
    Jumped before he was pushed. 
      February 23, 2018 9:26 AM MST
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  • 17404
    I think the officer was completely and totally negligent and he, without doubt, breached the duty of care of which he was charged and for which he was compensated.   He cannot explain this away.    Problems are stacking up in/with the school itself.  There are just a lot of questions.   Heartbreaking and enraging.
      February 23, 2018 2:37 PM MST
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  • 6023
    Let's start with the question of why he was there, in the first place.
    If it is to protect students ... why was he arriving so late in the school day?  Shouldn't he have been there prior to opening the building?
      February 23, 2018 2:46 PM MST
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  • 32700
    He was there all day. He arrived at the building after dealing with an issue with a female student. 
      February 23, 2018 3:43 PM MST
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  • 5391
    Coming from a combat vet (I live about 100 miles from Parkland, FL),  let me say this:
     as a MAN, if you have a (loaded) gun on you, and are even being paid to carry it —for whatever reason— and you don’t risk your life to save children in harm’s way nearby, then you forfeit your right to dwell in peace among us. Despicable act of cowardice. There is a dark place where cowards belong. 

    I personally think there was very little chance the officer didn’t hear all those rounds of gunfire. Is it simply coincidence that he remained outside at the exact time of the rampage? Or that he resigned? This to me isn’t a matter of training. It’s a matter of professional and human imperative. 

    IF the jaw-dropping inaction we hear isn’t Fake News, and I truly hope it is, there simply won’t be a just punishment for so grievous a failure. But he still has to live with the infamy. This post was edited by Don Barzini at February 23, 2018 3:55 PM MST
      February 23, 2018 3:11 PM MST
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