University of Iowa Publishes Active Shooter Safety Guidelines

[Jeff White]

Again, lets keep this thread on topic. No comments about carrying guns. No comments about how people should be allowed to carry on campus. those are not options. We are discussing the guidelines as published and if we can improve on them. Since firearms aren't permitted, they aren't permitted in this discussion either. Let's make S&T a place for rational conversation about serious subjects.

http://www.uiowa.edu/~pubsfty/activeshooter.htm

Safety Guidelines When Encountering Armed Subjects, Active Shooter Situations

Introduction
The following information is not intended to frighten, it is intended to inform and to enhance personal safety. “Active shooter” is the term used to describe a person who appears to be actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area; in most cases, active shooters use firearm(s) and there is no pattern or method to their selection of victims. An active shooter can be anyone, young or older; avoid stereotypes. These situations are dynamic and evolve rapidly, demanding immediate deployment of law enforcement resources to stop the shooting and mitigate harm to innocent victims. However, past experience shows us that these situations are usually over very quickly, and you need to be prepared to protect yourself before law enforcement can get there.
This document provides guidance to members of the University community who may be caught in an active shooter situation, and describes what to expect from responding police officers. The University of Iowa Police Department has adopted nationally accepted law enforcement response procedures to contain and neutralize such threats. Other area law enforcement agencies will provide assistance as needed.
Guidance to faculty, staff, and students
In general, how you respond to an active shooter will be dictated by the specific circumstances of the encounter, bearing in mind there could be more than one shooter involved in the same situation. If you find yourself involved in an active shooter situation, try to remain calm and focused. Use these guidelines to help you plan a strategy for survival.

* If you hear what sounds like gunshots or popping, immediately assume they are gunshots and don’t investigate; quickly consider your options as suggested below.
* You need to quickly decide one of three courses of action:
1. Can you stay where you are and secure yourself from the shooter? If so, take action to secure yourself, and, if it is safe, immediately call 911.
2. Can you escape the building or get to an area where you are secure from the shooter (or at least some place where the shooter can’t see you)? Get to a secure area if possible, and immediately call 911.
3. Are you unable to escape from the shooter? If you are unable to escape, you need to assess the situation to see if you can shield yourself, or if you need to prepare to take aggressive action to protect yourself.

The information below will aid in deciding on which course of action might be your best option.

* If an active shooter is outside your building, proceed to a room that can be locked if possible, close and lock all the windows and doors, and turn off all the lights; if possible, get everyone down on the floor and ensure that no one is visible from outside the room. One person in the room should call 911; you may hear multiple rings but stay on the line until it is answered. Advise the dispatcher of what is taking place, and inform him/her of your location; remain in place until the police, or a campus administrator known to you, gives the “all clear.” Unfamiliar voices may be the shooter attempting to lure victims from their safe space; do not respond to any voice commands until you can verify with certainty that they are being issued by a police officer.
* If an active shooter is in the same building you are, determine if the room you are in can be locked and if so, follow the same procedure described in the previous paragraph. If your room can’t be locked, determine if there is a nearby location that can be reached safely and secured, or if you can safely exit the building. If you decide to move from your current location, be sure to follow the instructions outlined below. If the room cannot be locked, barricade the door with heavy furniture such as desks, tables, and bookcases if possible. If you determine that escape is possible, run and attempt to alert others as you exit the area/building. As you exit, warn others from entering the area/building of danger.
* If an active shooter enters your office or classroom, try to remain calm. Dial 911, if possible, and alert police to the shooter’s location; if you can’t speak, leave the line open so the dispatcher can listen to what’s taking place. At times the location of a 911 call can be determined without speaking. If there is absolutely no opportunity for escape or hiding, attempt to shield yourself with any available object (i.e., desk, book bags, computers, etc.) It might be possible to negotiate with the shooter. If you and others decide there is no other choice but to make an attempt to overpower the shooter, realize this will involve significant risk and cannot be accomplished half-heartedly. If the decision is made to confront and attempt to overpower the shooter, experts recommend spreading out and not standing in a group. It may be possible to disorient the shooter by yelling and throwing items. Remember, this will involve significant risk and may involve final attempts to preserve innocent lives. If the shooter leaves the area, proceed immediately to a safer place and do not touch anything that was in the vicinity of the shooter.

No matter what the circumstances, if you decide to flee during an active shooting situation, make sure you have an escape route and plan in mind. Do not attempt to carry anything while fleeing; move quickly, keep your hands visible, and follow the instructions of any police officers you may encounter. Do not attempt to remove injured people; instead, leave wounded victims where they are and notify authorities of their location as soon as possible. Do not try to drive off campus until advised it is safe to do so by police or campus administrators; law enforcement authorities will want to speak with you to obtain information.
What to expect from responding police officers
Police officers responding to an active shooter are trained to proceed immediately to the area in which shots were last heard; their purpose is to stop the shooting as quickly as possible. The first responding officers will normally be in teams of four (4) or possibly fewer; they may be dressed in regular patrol uniforms, or they may be wearing external bullet resistive vests, helmets, and other tactical equipment. The officers may be armed with rifles, shotguns, or handguns, and might be using pepper spray or tear gas to control the situation.
Regardless of how they appear, remain calm, do exactly as the officers tell you, and do not be afraid of them. Do not ask questions, but provide important information (such as the location of the shooter) if you are certain of such information. In an active shooter scenario, police officers may not be able to immediately differentiate a shooter from a non shooter if the weapon is hidden; the assailant may attempt to blend in with the crowd to avoid detection. The police officer’s verbal commands will be loud and extremely insistent; do not be offended. Put down any bags or packages you may be carrying and keep your hands visible at all times; if you know where the shooter is, tell the officers. The first officers to arrive will not stop to aid injured people; rescue teams composed of other officers and emergency medical personnel will follow the first officers into secured areas to treat and remove injured persons. Keep in mind that even once you have escaped to a safer location, the entire area is still a crime scene; police will usually not let anyone leave until the situation is fully under control and all witnesses have been identified and questioned. Until you are released, remain at whatever assembly point authorities designate.
If you have questions after reviewing these guidelines, please contact the University Department of Public Safety (335-5022, [email protected], or 911 for emergency assistance).

 

[Claude Clay]

this from the same government that told us 50 years ago that our school desks were protection from atom bombs.
still duck & cover

 

[Jeff White]

Claude,
This is S&T, not General Gun Discussions. If you aren't happy with those guidelines, tell us how you'd fix them. Just keep in mind that anyone being armed isn't an option here.

Jeff

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Giving many of the legal restrictions and lack of options available on campuses such as this and what the university can legally suggest, it reads well.

I like the first * - assume popping noises are gunshots. In every incident I have read about, those not directly witnessing the shooting commonly assume loud popping noises are anything other than shooting, most commonly fireworks, even in places where there is no reason to assume there would be fireworks, such as inside of college buildings. They then lose precious time not doing anything that would better their situation and often fail to do anything constructive until AFTER there is some identification of the noise, such as people screaming, seeing wounded people, or seeing the shooter(s). It is surreal to see or read an interview with a victim who notes that when shots were first heard, they were thought to be fireworks or a car backfire (how often do we hear backfires these days?) and are then surprised by the shooter and get wounded.

Barricading inside of rooms has been poo-poo'ed quite a bit after VT where the shooter was able to gain entry into barricaded rooms. However, barricading can and does work on many levels...if you don't have the option of flight. Barricading has worked in other school shootings such as Columbine and it did work at VT. At VT, barricading served to either stop or delay entry into rooms. The amount of time the shooter spent attempting to gain entry was time he wasn't able to just walk around and shoot people. As these engagements tend to have a very definite limited time framework, such delays result in forcing the shooter to do things other than shooting people, meaning less chance to shoot people, and less people getting shot.

 

[Treo]

I think one of the keys that has kind of been touched on here is that first instant of disbelief. People don't want to believe it's happening to them.

 

[BigO01]

Jeff you state we can't discuss the use of a weapon and the schools have it as an official policy to prohibit them yet they release this "Official" Guideline for dealing with these situations and include the following statements in them .

These situations are dynamic and evolve rapidly, demanding immediate deployment of law enforcement resources to stop the shooting and mitigate harm to innocent victims. However, past experience shows us that these situations are usually over very quickly, and you need to be prepared to protect yourself before law enforcement can get there.

If you are unable to escape, you need to assess the situation to see if you can shield yourself, or if you need to prepare to take aggressive action to protect yourself.

So a person has assessed that they need to take aggressive action to protect themselves yet they are denied the most effective tool for doing so .

Instead of posing questions to the general public as to what we suggest , people need to be posing the question to the universities that agree with and are issuing "Guidelines" like this and ask them point blank just what do they suggest a student uses to "Aggressively" defend themselves . Throw books at a gunman ?

Then they continue with

If an active shooter is outside your building, proceed to a room that can be locked if possible, close and lock all the windows and doors, and turn off all the lights; if possible, get everyone down on the floor and ensure that no one is visible from outside the room.

Why "If possible" they control the design of the building why haven't they insured that all doors can be locked from the inside of the room ? Have they even provided blinds for all the windows of the ground floor rooms so you can make sure a shooter can't look in and find more targets ?

Have they bothered to install at least one window in every second floor and higher class that is big enough to escape out of and a Rope ladder that can be used ?

Have they began replacing the typical wooden classroom door with a solid steel ones ?

It seems to me despite the ever rising cost of education they are doing their best to NOT take any responsibility in this particular area and are instead passing the buck onto first Law enforcement and now onto the students themselves all the while refusing to let them have the most effective means of accomplishing the task .

This ridiculous position has now been taken to the level that some Universities don't even want Full Time Police officers to be able to carry a weapon on their precious campuses when they are taking and even teaching classes .

You say you want us to find ways to improve upon their "Guidelines" how so ?

If they are starting to refuse to allow firearms even in the hands of trained Police do you think they will allow students to carry mace/pepper spray ? The first time a student accidentally discharges it in a classroom digging in their purse "It does happen fairly often" it will get banned also .

If the universities are too cheap to install solid Steel doors with locks in the classrooms they most certainly won't pay for a Ballistic Shield to be kept in each class to stop bullets from hitting people if a shooter starts firing through the door .

I can understand why you don't want to see 30+ posts of "Allow CCW" or "give teachers guns" as it isn't productive at all but then again nothing we say will be .

What will be productive is for the parents and students that pay these ever rising tuition costs to demand the Universities make a decision that if they are going to refuse to let people effectively be prepared to protect themselves aggressively then they need to step up and provide enough armed security officers to effectively do so for them and that means the Deans and Professors will need to take a reduction in pay to have the funds to do so .

All of this sending Memo's , establishing Guidelines etc. etc. is nothing more than useless feel good PC nonsense that does nothing more than waste time and cost lives when the next crazed gunman goes on a rampage .

It's time to put and end to touching Memorials Celebrating the lives of the victims with Flowers , Pictures , stuffed animals and tear jerking speeches and lets begin celebrating life it self by refusing to live in fear and becoming victims and demanding that it be held in high enough regard that it is worth defending and fighting for .

The Herd mentality has become horribly ingrained in our society , just as a herd of animals has it's normal flow interrupted for a brief period of time when a predator takes a member and then within minutes goes about it's daily routine and forgets the victim so do we .

We have these Memorials and Share our feelings so we can have closure and within days or perhaps weeks we are back to same old routine never bothering to acknowledge that the Routine is the problem and WE are now tomorrows potential victims but it's OK as long as the Herd as a whole survives .

 

[Harvster]

Not all universities ban firearms.(Utah for example)

you need to be prepared to protect yourself before law enforcement can get there.

I thought of something that may work in a situation such as this but it slipped my mind.....maybe it will come to me later. But, perhaps, a pointy stick would work.

 

[JDoe]

Jeff said "no firearms" not "no weapons"

Insert more reality in what to expect if a shooter is confronted by a group of people that may never have ever seen or heard a gun fired indoors or outdoors.

Insert a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section to include questions like "If I am shot will I die instantly" (like on TV), "How do people react when faced with an active shooter" and so on.

We have fire extinguishers behind glass located next to the fire alarm switch why not have a Taser and/or Pepper Spray behind glass protected by an alarm. When the glass is broken to access the Taser or Pepper Spray the "Active Incident" alarm goes off, students, staff and faculty are alerted locally and the police at all levels receive immediate notice of the "Active Incident" alarm. That way innocents can escape or more quickly hunker down and the police are instantly alerted that something is up. Oh and a mandatory jail term for those responsible for false alarms or trying to steal the Taser or pepper spray.

With the Taser and/or Pepper Spray secured in their cabinets I'd insert a section in the guidelines explaining how to use both, that neither may stop the active shooter and so on including the customary CYA remarks.

 

[GEM]

Staying with the parameters of Jeff's OP, I think the guidelines are realistic (given no guns) - they touch on quite a few points in the emergency response literature on how folks act under pressure.

If I were to add something from an action standpoint, I might suggest that in some shootings the actor has shot open locked doors and pushed away less than effective barricades.

One might consider an ambush as the door (granted unarmed). However, in a large group - there may be a number of pepper sprays and pocket knives to add to the improvised weapons list. There may be folks with some crisis experience. I've taught classes with police and military (more adult classes), wrestlers, etc.

If you did have time to organize, I suggest rapid engagement at the doorway with folks who understanding the risk of some taking a round.

 

[Oana]

As with the other set of guidelines, I'm shocked (and pleased) to see them acknowledging more than the "duck and cover" option.

* If you hear what sounds like gunshots or popping, immediately assume they are gunshots and don’t investigate; quickly consider your options as suggested below.
* You need to quickly decide one of three courses of action:

Very good, especially the "quickly" part. Stuff happens fast.

If you and others decide there is no other choice but to make an attempt to overpower the shooter, realize this will involve significant risk and cannot be accomplished half-heartedly.

Again, good. The only thing I take issue with is this "if you and others decide" business. Maybe it's just the way they phrased it, but makes it sound like it's an option that has to be discussed in a roundtable. Remember - quick decisions! Make your own decision; if you have time, quickly work with the others and make your plans. Or, TELL them what to do if necessary - "We're going to need to get this guy when he comes in - if you want to help, let's do this". This is *not* the time for a democratic vote. Lead, follow, or get out of the way.

 

[ilbob]

I want to know just how you are supposed to be certain it is the cops on the other side of the door and not someone just stating they are cops.

I for one would not be obeying the edict to stay in a herd so the second wave of shooters has a better crop of victims. I don't personally care about being a witness. I will be getting [expletive deleted] out as fast as possible. After it is all over, I will call and tell them they can come interview me if they want to. If I have important information to give them it will be transmitted by telephone after I am at a safe location well away from the site.

 

[Geno]

As a graduate professor, I work under these very conditions, and worse, because where I instruct, even the "campus insecurity guards" are completely unarmed. Even the insecurity guards are prohibited from carrying even mace/pepper spray.

The first thing I do is to carry 1 or 2 cans of the hottest spray allowed in Michigan. I also encourage my students to carry pepper spray. Those students who absolutely cannot afford it, I buy a large can for them. That is why I say 1 or 2 cans. I carry 2 cans, but end up several times per semester carrying the one remaining because of gifting them. Well, it isn't really a gift. It's a act of promoting self-defense, and helping students to not be a victim.

The second thing I do is to offer anyone and everyone who wants to pursue a CCW, even though it cannot be carried, to do so. During my free time, I have driven several fellow professors, and met-up with students at the indoor range. I take several of my handguns and ammo for them to try out for free. Of these six (6) folks, all 6 of them have now acquired a CCW. The relevance here is changing minds. We change enough minds, we change policy eventually. Until then, revisit the first point above.

Doc2005

 

[Old Fuff]

As has been pointed out, school administrators at all levels are not very realistic about how things work in the real world. To start out they say:

These situations are dynamic and evolve rapidly, demanding immediate deployment of law enforcement resources to stop the shooting and mitigate harm to innocent victims.

So effective deterrence is left exclusively to law enforcement. But then they go on:

However, past experience shows us that these situations are usually over very quickly, ...

Obviously so. If the "active shooter" has gained access to the room he can easily slaughter 30 or more people in a very short time span. The saying, "When seconds count the police are only minutes away," couldn't be truer.

... and you need to be prepared to protect yourself before law enforcement can get there.

One can only wish that the administrators that think up these proposals could be in the same room.

Anyway, the proposals offered concerning evasion and escape before being trapped may have some value, and if they are serious some better locks and stronger doors might be put in classrooms and any others where large numbers of students gather. I would observe that any institution that has unarmed security or law enforcement isn't really serious about the issue.

Doc 2005's suggestion of having chemical weapons is a lot more viable then anything they suggest for trapped victims, but it notable that the posted regulations make no mention of it, and I have a feeling that if chemical sprays were suggested they would be quickly banned.

The fact of the matter is that these administrators lack the necessary intellectual, emotional and philosophical capability to face the issue of an active shooter on their campus, and proceed on the premise that, "it won't ever happen here." If or when it does it will be innocent lives that are lost, and not those that set in motion the conditions that helped make it possible.

 

[Old Guy]

you need to be prepared to protect yourself before law enforcement can get there.

Most of the active shooter situations involve young people who have never heard a gun shot.

To have an area, Web/Phone, where recordings of pistol, and Rifle fire could be heard would be beneficial. This is not popping sounds people, these are not fireworks, and no, cars do not backfire any more! These are gun shots.

Having an U tube area that could show different weapons, magazines, and how they are reloaded would let the viewers recognize when the criminal is more vulnerable to attack. Just like the old War time pictures of Fighter Planes and Bombers with all the specs along side.

"When the gun is held this way they have a problem with it, or they are reloading, attack now, pens, shark instrument's, aim for eyes, or throat, your life depends on your self"

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Exactly! There is no reason to consider yourself defeated just because you are not armed firearm and the shooter is. There have been incidents where unarmed students and faculty have taken up the cause and made a difference. By and large, it seems, the ones being slaughtered are initially the first victims, and then those who do nothing to better their situation besides remaining motionless. It may not always be prudent to fight at a given moment, many of these school shootings have presented potential victims with oppoturnities to fight back and for the most part, they have failed to do so. There are exception such as the UT Tower shooting where the shooter was not actually in close proximity to any of the students after he started firing from the top of the tower, but most such shootings are CQB situations and very short range.

 

[cambeul41]

I like Doc2005's idea of carrying and encouraging students to carry mace/pepper spray.

I do provide CCW information to students

 

[rbernie]

From my untutored perspective, I thought that the guideline document was reasonably well organized. It first addressed the stay/flee options, and then progressed to how to behave in each of these options.

The notion of calling 911 while cowering on the floor with a shooter in the room may be perhaps necessary but problematic. I surely would not like the notion of trying to call 911 while folks around me (and perhaps me) are being targeted. I would probably prefer an active response first. But that's just me.

I think that the mention of negotiating with the shooter was ill-advised. Is there any experience from Columbine, VT, or any other school shooting that the shooter responded positively to such efforts? I really doubt it.....

I found the notion of suggesting a violent reaction (rushing the shooter) to be a positive one, especially from a presumably-liberal institution such as a college. Spreading out and creating a diversion/distraction sounded like reasonable advice. But, as has already been pointed out, there was a significant gap in the guidelines WRT identifying ad-hoc weapons (fire extinguishers, school supplies, etc.) and providing tips on how to potentially use them.

The tome spent a fair bit of time trying to explain what to expect from police that were reacting to the shooting; I thought that was an interesting topic to discuss.

I guess it's a start (given the positive mention of possible violent defense) but it really fell short in anything other than flee and/or be a good victim.

 

[JDoe]

Glen Meyer, a full professor in the Psychology Department at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas (and pro gun) talks about his experience with the campus police in an active shooter scenario exercise.

Under "What Did the Officers Learn?" there is this interesting tid bit...

5. The school has unarmed officers. They do parking tickets and the like. They were run through a scenario once. The rationale was that they might be with an armed officer who then gets shot. Should they pick up the officer’s gun and stay in the fight? They needed some gun basics: the four rules, use your sights, etc.

Students are asked to consider confronting the active shooter and use weapons like their notebook computers.

Shouldn't willing students be able to receive some additional training in what to do if an armed officer is incapacitated by the active shooter? At the very least shouldn't there be a short paragraph on what to do in such a situation?

 

[TallPine]

A large Maglite in your bookbag might be helpful

 

[308win]

That anyone would lock themselves in a room with no means of escape is incomprehensible. The only viable strategy is evade and egress to another area not accessible to the shooter.

If the shooter controls the corridors of escape your alternative is to evade him untill you can kill him.

 

[GEM]

Who is this Glenn Meyer guy! How can a psychology professor be progun? I don't believe it. Psychologists with guns! Impossible.

I'm not impressed by a full professor. Oh, wait.

 

[Oana]

A large Maglite in your bookbag might be helpful

I doubt schools will be including this in their policy anytime soon, but this is really what students need to do as long as CCW isn't allowed. BYOIW - Bring Your Own Improvised Weapon. "Official" weapons like guns may be barred, but pepper spray, Maglites, and other everyday items can be carried and pulled out if there's a need. No sense in waiting 'til there's a problem and then looking wildly around.

I'm preaching to the choir, I know.

Shouldn't willing students be able to receive some additional training in what to do if an armed officer is incapacitated by the active shooter? At the very least shouldn't there be a short paragraph on what to do in such a situation?

Probably a good idea. (Of course, a security officer and a student differ in that the student has absolutely no obligation to provide security.) Also, gun handling/safety info would help students know what to do if they disarm the attacker and have his gun.

 

[Geronimo45]

Not especially bad. Locking/barricading the doors could be improved on a bit. For instance - if you have double doors and no lock, you could use a belt or chair to lock the door. Turning off lights is good. In some rooms, you might be able to get out through the ceiling, if it has the ceiling tiles and isn't too high. You could smash a hole in the drywall to get out, if there's no windows in the room.

 

[dmftoy1]

I know I'm dreaming but I'd love to see a college teach a for credit course on Situational Awareness and Self Defense. I just paid for a semester of Soccer for my twin boys and I don't see any difference. I've done a pretty good job of instilling awareness in my daughter but I don't know if my boys "get it".

The one big flaw in the "prepare to defend yourself" scenario is that I don't think most people are prepared to "fight" mentally. I paid my way through college playing football and wrestling and I had to psyche myself up to step out on the mat. It's a whole different level of psyching up that I think you'd need to do in order to be ready to fight for your life. I think even having someone talk to you about the proper mindset if you had to defend yourself (in any scenario) would be useful. I don't think my kids would completely understand the mentality and I suspect that most people today under the age of 75 probably wouldn't either.

Just my .02

Regards,
Dave

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Shouldn't willing students be able to receive some additional training in what to do if an armed officer is incapacitated by the active shooter? At the very least shouldn't there be a short paragraph on what to do in such a situation?

Sure. They used to call it 'the G.I. Bill.'

It is one thing to train your security to work with the cops. They will be oriented to the trouble and participating in the resolution. There are only a few of them (relatively speaking) and all or most can receive such training.

Compare that to the transient student population. Say you have a smaller campus of just 5000 students. When a shooting starts, how many are going to be involved? Only a small fraction. How many will have had 'officer assistance by students training' on campus and of those, how many will be involved with the shooting and how many will be accompanying officers? None will accompany officers, but Security might.

Aside from UT Austin, in how many school shootings have armed police been downed? So it really is a diminished capacity sort of training where the likelihood is so remote to be impractical.

1. School Shootings - Rare, all of the news, but only low frequency
2. School Shootings where officers were involved - More Rare. In most cases, officers have arrived and mostly deal with aftermath or engage from exterior (but this is supposed to be changing for Active Shooter situations)
3. School Shootings where officers were involved and downed - Rarer still (only UT comes to mind)
4. School Shootings where officers were involved, downed, and were armed in such a manner that a student could do a battlefield pickup and engage the shooter - UT would be it.