Columbine: The "Pearl Harbor" of Active Shooter Events
Evolutionary Event in Response Protocols :
Just like the attack performed by Charles Whitman in Austin, Texas from “The Texas Tower” in 1966, the attack performed by Harris and Klebold in Littleton, Colorado at Columbine High School in 1999 had a long term major impact on law enforcement response protocols. In 1966, there were no existing SWAT teams and the Texas Tower incident helped justify the need, and eventual development of, special response teams. With the development of those teams, quite common by the 1970s across the country, the response of patrol officers at high risk events became reduced by policy: respond, set up a perimeter, feed intel, wait for SWAT. Things stayed that way, with refinements in perimeter set up, SWAT response, and the addition of mobile command posts, until 1999.
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The remainder of this article is part of the book "Active Killers and the Crimes They Perpetrated," available in print or ebook via Amazon.
Joshua Borelli
Joshua Borelli has been studying active shooter and mass attack events over the course of the past several years, commensurate with receiving training on response and recovery to natural disasters and civil disturbances. Joshua started to outline this series of articles in an attempt to identify commonalities and logistical needs patterns for response.
