High Threat Cover

A lot has changed since Columbine, or so we thought. That April day in 1999 challenged the conventional wisdom of the law enforcement approach to active threats.

At the time, containment until a tactical team arrives on scene was the preferred response to these incidents. What Colorado law enforcement created that day was the unbridled slaughter of civilians while a strong perimeter was created. The law enforcement community recognized a radical change was needed.

This change in response tactics led to quad entry tactics which called for four officers to enter in the school in a diamond formation. This allowed for 360 degree coverage for officers entering into “hot zones”. The drawback of the “quad” is that in a lot of areas this could take several minutes before enough officers were on scene to enter the hot zone. The quad also required officers to be effective communicators during high stress situations. Between complex communication and the necessity to shorten the time to target, the quad became a tactic of the past, except for when stars align.

Eventually, law enforcement came to the inevitable conclusion that was needed. The solo response. This required the first officer on scene to make entry into the building or area, get to the threat, and engage that threat with lethal force. Shortening the time to the threat means less lethal engagement on innocent civilians. These solo response tactics will be what we primarily focus on over the next few weeks.