Should SWAT teams be training during the COVID-19 Pandemic? A simple question with a complicated answer. With the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the United States on January 20th according the New England Journal of Medicine, many law enforcement officers from across the country converged on Las Vegas for SHOT Show the exact same week. Unbeknownst to the vast majority business was usual at the yearly gathering of the largest shooting, hunting and outdoors trade show in the world. The one consistency to SWAT training during this time is the inconsistency of training between law enforcement agencies throughout the country. We will examine several key points as the country begins to open up and SWAT training becomes more frequent.
Essential or Not
We are living in a unique time where in some areas of the country, SWAT has had their training time significantly reduced or halted. This has caused frustration & stress on top of the pandemic issue as team members are understandably concerned about their team’s operational readiness. Considering that the majority of the SWAT teams in the United States are Collateral Duty teams, according to the National Tactical Officers Association, they already experience limited training time each month. Further reduction of training can seriously affect operational readiness for many of these teams. Reduction of training can manifest itself in many ways such as lack of weapon skills maintenance, reality based training, qualification of firearms and larger scale training. Operationally, COVID-19 has had a trickle-down effect for SWAT. Investigative work groups that provide warrants for SWAT to execute have slow down or dried up. Specifically, those related to narcotics search warrants. With CDC Guidelines in effect detectives that self-initiated buys themselves or with confidential informants have decreased or altogether stopped. With little or no narcotics warrants to be executed SWAT teams have no planned operations to conduct except for conventional SWAT callouts. A sampling of SWAT operators from the West to East coast finds a common theme of reduced or no training. Full time teams seem to be the least affected although some have had to acquiesce to the current situation as well. Essential businesses or services seems to have become the buzz word during this pandemic. With the microscopic squarely on law enforcement and officers’ actions with the advent of mobile devices and social media training should not be reduced but rather increased to ensure the accountability of SWAT personnel during operations and emergency response. At no other time have we seen that SWAT training is more essential and vital for law enforcement in today’s world.
NTOA Recommended Guidelines
Early in March the National Tactical Officers Association (www.ntoa.org) issued training guidelines to assist SWAT & specialized law enforcement in navigating the pandemic. TEMS Chair Jason R. Pickett, MD issued the following statement. “As law enforcement officers, maintaining critical skills is paramount as poor marksmanship, poor decision-making or poor fitness may have catastrophic results for you, your fellow officers, your department, or the public. Therefore, you should continue training at every opportunity and should not let COVID-19 shut down your training program. In reference to range training, Go shoot. Training on an open range conveys no risk of transmission. Enclosed ranges that have ventilation that helps carry away infectious droplets are also good. There is also no risk of COVID-19 presented by shooting on an indoor range by yourself.” For additional information please visit the NTOA site.
SWAT Training
First, an alarmist view should first be abandoned in lieu of common sense. SWAT training can be conducted safely while adhering to basic CDC guidelines. No one is advocating blindly abandoning the guidelines that are intended to protect our wellbeing. Furthermore, assuming that every team member is ok with training during this time could be incorrect. Supervisors should talk individually to team members and address any concerns they may have. Just because you are a member of SWAT does not mean you all will feel the same on the COVID topic. Generally, a large portion of weapon skills maintenance and training is conducted at a firearms facility. The majority of the range locations are outside with a smaller amount comprising indoor ranges. CDC guidelines can easily be followed with the social distancing 6-foot rule while conducting weapons training outside. SWAT Commanders and above that may have concerns about navigating this should instruct supervisors to attend training to ensure compliance. As previously mentioned, the NTOA recommended guidelines states there is no risk of contamination at an outdoor firearms facility. Furthermore, Reality Based Training (RBT) can be conducted in a similar manner by limiting the number of participants and selecting an open air or large training site. Prior CDC guidelines limited gatherings to 10 persons or less, but with the reopening of America those numbers have increased. If classroom presentations are utilized, then select a room large enough for 6-foot spacing between students with the tables & chair configuration. Mask use in classroom settings adds another layer of protection also if needed. Pre and post sanitizing of tables can alleviate any concerns and still adhere to the basic guidelines. Training should not stop during the pandemic but should adapt to safe practices that still allow for crucial training.
COVID-19 Training Plan
A first step to resuming training can be the implementation of a COVID-19 Training plan. This plan may consist of an email, word document or be placed in the training lesson plan. This added step for organized training will provide documentation that certain measures were taken to ensure a safe training environment. Supervision is also recommended to be present at the training. Areas to be addressed include:
· Primary instructor(s)
· Supervisor over training
· Number of participants
· Areas utilized (classroom/range)
· How will 6 feet social distancing be maintained
· Any disinfectants needed/utilized (i.e. classroom tables, chairs)
· Briefing at beginning of training to participants
· Temperature check (optional)
· Anyone not feeling well do not attend
Closing Thoughts
The effects of COVID-19 on our society are obvious. Recent generations have not experienced such a dramatic change to our daily livelihood. While the reduction of training has varied from team to team the response to SWAT call outs and recent riots and civil unrest has not. SWAT preparedness comes from three areas. Operational tempo, training, and education. For teams that have dealt with a reduction of training the sudden thrust into riot operations can be abrupt. SWAT teams should not go dormant for any length of time and then be ramped up into action without good cause. Police administrators should keep in mind that consistent training during the pandemic will enable SWAT teams to be better prepared for the civil unrest that has occurred throughout our country. Specialized work groups need specialized training to sustain their operational readiness. This directly correlates to better decision making and appropriate use of force thus reducing local government liability.
