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Active Shooters:

Reducing the Severity of Active Shooter Situations

Abagail Huggins

Arizona State University

PAF 461: Homeland Security

Jeremy Rodrigues

August 11, 2020

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In the event of an active shooter situation, what programs/protocols can be used to help

reduce the severity of the situation? This is the question I am looking to answer as I conduct my

research on active shooters. There is no denying that the number and frequency of mass

shootings that happen in the United States is an issue. According to a report from the Federal

Bureau of Investigation (FBI), there were at least 277 active shooter situations between 2000 and

2018 (Active Shooter Incidents: 2000-2018, p. 2, 2019). These situations included the Route 91

Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, NV; the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, FL; and the Cinemark

Century 16 theater in Aurora, CO (Active Shooter Incidents: 2000-2018, p. 3, 2019). After doing

some research, it has been discovered that, although active shooter situations have happened

throughout U.S. history, one incident changed the way both law enforcement approached these

situations (Stansberry, p. 17, 2016), as well as led to the development of new protocols to

prepare for and use in the event of an active shooter situation (Seebock, p. 1, 2018). This incident

was the Columbine High School shooting that occurred on April 20, 1999 in Littleton, CO

(Martin, p. 32, 2019). Some programs/protocols that were implemented after this incident

included the ALERRT course as well as the run, hide, fight protocol. Along with these

implementations that are used nationally, various schools have established their own

programs/protocols that can help in the event of an active shooter situation.

The first active shooter program/protocol that we are going to discuss is a protocol that

was established to help prepare for an active shooter situation. The Advanced Law Enforcement

Rapid Response Training course, also known as ALERRT, was established from concerns after

the Columbine High School shooting (Schweit, 2013) and has since been adopted by many state

and local police departments as their standard response to active shooter situations (Active

Shooter Resources, 2016). Before the ALERRT course was established, the response to active
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shooter situations from law enforcement was based off the “5 Cs” (Atwater, 2015). According to

the article To Save Lives and Property: High Threat Response, the “5Cs” are “contain, control,

call SWAT, communicate with the perpetrator, and come up with a tentative plan” (Atwater,

2015). Of course, we want to work so that there are no casualties during a situation, which is

why I find ALERRT to be a particularly good protocol and the reason that it was established.

The problem with the “5 Cs” protocol was that it caused a delay in interference which was

believed to have led to more casualties (Atwater, 2015). The goal of the ALERRT course is to

help better train the law enforcement that are the first to arrive on the scene during an active

shooter situation (Schweit, 2013). This course allows law enforcement to gain knowledge in

areas that they are less trained in so that they can better assist and intervene earlier. Because of

this, I believe that it can help reduce the severity of a situation.

As active shooter situations kept occurring throughout the United States, more

programs/protocols were developed. One of these protocols, which was implemented by the

Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is the run, hide, fight protocol and is to be used in the

event of an active shooter situation (Martin, p. 35, 2019). There are three measures to this

protocol, and they are: 1. Evacuate, 2. Hide out, and 3. Take action against the shooter (Martin,

p. 35, 2019). In my opinion, I find these measures to be straightforward. The first measure,

which is evacuate, means that if you can do so safely, you should evacuate the scene. The second

measure, which is hide out, is to hide out in a safe spot if you are not able to safely evacuate. The

last measure, which is to take action against the shooter, means in the event you encounter the

shooter and you are in danger, “attempt to disrupt and/or incapacitate the active shooter” (Martin,

p. 35, 2019). I find that the run, hide, fight protocol is mostly taught in a school environment, but
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in my opinion, I think everyone should know this protocol because it could be useful in any

environment.

As I stated earlier, besides the more well-known programs/protocols that are used

nationally like the ALERRT course and the run, hide, fight protocol, there have also been other

programs/protocols developed that aren’t as well known and are only used at select

establishments. Some of these lesser known programs, which are mostly used in schools, include

the “See-Hear-Report” program, real-time location systems (RTLS), and anonymous reporting

and prevention platforms (Lewis, 2013). In January 2013, the Somerset Police Department of

Somerset, KY introduced “See-Hear-Report”, an anonymous text-a-tip program that is used by

three high schools within the county (Lewis, p. 59, 2013). According to Lewis, the purpose of

this program is to “provide students with an assurance of anonymity and confidentiality” when

reporting something (Lewis, p. 59, 2013). I find this to be a great program and should be

implemented in all school districts. I think it should be implemented in all school districts

because many kids are afraid to speak up, but with the anonymity of the “See-Hear-Report”

program, it can take that fear away, potentially saving lives. The only negative things about this

program is that kids who do not have phones cannot use it. I hope there is a program that has

been developed or is being developed to provide kids without a phone with the same opportunity.

The next program, which is real-time location systems (RTLS), was implemented at

Skyview High School in Nampa, Idaho (Lewis, p. 60, 2013). Real-time location systems are a

wearable device that “uses radio frequency identification technology and the school’s Wi-Fi

network” (Lewis, p. 61, 2013). The use of RTLS reduces the notification time to dispatchers

down to 3.9 seconds (Lewis, p. 61, 2013). The notification time to dispatchers is reduced to 3.9
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seconds when using RTLS because rather than a teacher having to notify the front office that the

school needs to be put on lockdown and dispatchers need to be notified, a teacher or staff

member can automatically put the school on lockdown and at the same time notify dispatchers

with the pull of a tab on their device instead of notifying other people to do it (Lewis, p. 61,

2013). This is another great program and should be used in all school districts. I feel that all

teachers and staff members should have the ability to put a school on lockdown, not just the front

office.

One final lesser known program that has been implemented is anonymous reporting and

prevention platforms. Used at Thomas Nelson Community College in Virginia and in Tulsa,

Oklahoma public schools, Lewis states that these platforms are used for students and faculty to

anonymously report concerns (Lewis, p. 51, 2013). Not only that, but these reports may “lead to

a successful intervention and possibly, a life saved” (Lewis, p. 50, 2013). This program is very

similar to the “See-Hear-Report” program, but rather than using your phone to text a concern,

you go to the school’s website and use its “hot button” to report a concern instead (Lewis. P. 50,

2013). I feel that the anonymous reporting and prevention platforms are a more useful program

than the “See-Hear-Report” program because everyone can use it rather than just people with

phones.

All the programs/protocols that we have discussed throughout this paper would not be

possible without the many different concepts of homeland security. I find one of the main

concepts presented throughout all these programs/protocols is the whole community approach.

The whole community approach allows everyone within a community to “collectively

understand and assess the needs of their respective communities” (Martin, p. 259, 2019). Every
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citizen within a community plays a different part in making these programs/protocols successful,

and without their collaboration and cooperation, these programs/protocols would not be possible.

One other homeland security approach that I find is presented throughout all these

programs/protocols is state and local response and recovery planning. For example, ALERRT

helps prepare state and local law enforcement plan and respond better to an active shooter

situation in the early stages that they may have not been as familiar with. All these

programs/protocols require state and local response in some way.

Throughout this paper, we have examined various active shooter situation

programs/protocols, ranging from nationally to lesser known. This includes the ALERRT course

and the run, hide, fight protocol, as well as the “See-Hear-Report” program, real-time location

systems, and anonymous reporting and prevention platforms. This is just a small list of the many

different active shooter situation programs/protocols I came across while researching active

shooters, and I am sure there will be many new ones in the years to come. Nobody should ever

have to go through something like this and it is sad to think about how so many people already

have, which is why I chose to research active shooters and ask what programs/protocols can be

used to help reduce the severity of an active shooter situation in the event one does happen.
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Annotated Bibliography

Active Shooter Incidents in the United States: 2000-2018 [PDF]. (2019). Washington D.C.:

United States. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved July 10, 2020, from

https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=834188.

Published by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, Active Shooter Incidents

in the United States: 2000-2018 is one of many reports in a series about active shooter

situations in the United States. The report analyzes data related to 277 active shooter

situations in the U.S. between 2000-2018. This report, which is intended for the law

enforcement, businesses, educational institutions, and the general public, separates each

active shooter related topic and provides statistical data for each matter. These topics

include casualties, shooters, and the environment in which the shooting took place.

Active Shooter Resources. (2016, June 09). Retrieved July 18, 2020, from

https://www.fbi.gov/about/partnerships/office-of-partner-engagement/active-shooter-

resources.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation’s website presents a page that provides

a brief description about active shooters and the FBI in active shooter situations. Not only

that but it also provides a brief description about training for these types of situations as

well as operational and victim assistance. The intended audience of this page seems to be

directed more towards law enforcement but can also be useful to the general public. This

page on the FBI’s website also provides further resources to look at such as videos,

partner agencies, and FBI/additional resources.

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Atwater, P. A., Delaney, J., Marino, M., & Smith, R. (2015, June). To Save Lives and Property:

High Threat Response. Retrieved July 18, 2020, from

https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=767013.

Experts in the field of emergency services, Marino, Delaney, Atwater, and Smith wrote

the article To Save Lives and Property: High Threat Response to discuss how emergency

services and law enforcement must be able to change and adjust to different situations.

While the article seems to be directed more towards law enforcement and emergency

services, it could be useful to the general public as well. This article looks back on the

tactics used by law enforcement and emergency services during events such as the

killings at Columbine High School in 1999 and discusses how using different tactics

could have changed the outcome of the event. The article also looks at whose job should

be what during these types of situations.

Lewis, B. (2013). Sharing Ideas and Resources to Keep Our Nation's Schools Safe! [PDF].

National Institute of Justice (U.S.). Retrieved July 18, 2020, from

https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=745941.

Sharing Ideas and Resources to Keep Our Nation’s Schools Safe!, written by Becky

Lewis, is a guide that explains the different training and technologies now being used by

law enforcement to help in keeping schools safe in an active shooter situation. Some

technologies discussed in this guide include Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response

Training (ALERRT), Association of Chiefs of Police online training, and School Safety

Audits. Not only that, but this guide also looks into the successful attempts from different

communities to help in keeping schools during an active shooter situation. Sharing Ideas
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and Resources to Keep Our Nation’s Schools Safe! is a guide intended for schools,

however, some of the things discussed can be adapted on other environments.

Martin, G. (2019). Understanding Homeland Security (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage

Publications.

Gus Martin, a Professor of Criminal Justice Administration at California State University,

Dominguez Hills, is the author of the textbook Understanding Homeland Security.

Martin presents this textbook as a way to introduce homeland security. More specifically,

post 9/11 homeland security. This textbook is geared more towards students and

professionals that have an interest in modern homeland security. Very knowledgeable in

this field of study, Martin explores the many different aspects of homeland security. The

textbook ranges anywhere from the foundation of homeland security to terrorism in the

United States to the future of homeland security.

Schweit, K. W. (2013, May 07). Addressing the Problem of the Active Shooter. Retrieved July

19, 2020, from https://leb.fbi.gov/articles/featured-articles/addressing-the-problem-of-

the-active-shooter.

Posted to the FBI’s website to the general public, an article titled Addressing the Problem

of the Active Shooter by Katherine W. Schweit examines the different types of training

established due to the many mass shootings in the U.S. Schweit discusses the

establishment of the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT)

after the Columbine High School Shooting in 1999 as well as the presence of a more

strict enforcement in ALERRT training after the Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012.

Along with the implementation of this training, there is a discussion about laws that have
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been put into place because of active shooter situations as well. All of these

implementations will help better address active shooter situations.

Seebock, J. J. (2018). Responding to High-Rise Active Shooters (Master's thesis, Naval

Postgraduate School, 2018). Monterey: Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.). Retrieved July

19,2020, from https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=821375.

Intended for the general public, a thesis by James J. Seebock from the Naval Postgraduate

School titled Responding to High-Rise Active Shooters studies three active shooter

situations. These situations are the University of Texas tower shooting, the Mumbai

terrorist attack, and the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. Seebock investigates the actions of

these high-rise shooters as well as explores these events police response and training in

these situations. Along with this, Seebock also looks at these situations to determine ways

for law enforcement to become more proactive in active shooter situations.

Stansberry, L. M. (2016). Augmenting Security on Department of Defense Installations to Defeat

the Active Shooter Threat (Master's thesis, U.S. Army Command and General Staff

College, 2016). Fort Leavenworth: U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

Retrieved July 19, 2020, from https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=795249.

Leslie M. Stansberry, the author of the thesis Augmenting Security on Department of

Defense Installations to Defeat the Active Shooter Threat, which is a part of a series

about active shooters, looks to answer whether the military would benefit from more

armed personnel and law enforcement to help in an active shooter situation. To determine

this, Stansberry looks at a variety of different things. Stansberry looks at anything from

military documents to active shooter case studies.