Stop the Attack

Defeat the Attacker

Based on the Sheepdog Church Security training course
Active Shooter Neutralization and Lock Down Drills

In The Bible

Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from violent men, who have planned to trip up my feet (Psalms 140:4).

Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle (Psalms144:1).

[Jesus] said to them, “... And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one” (Luke 22:36).

“The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you" (Deuteronomy 28:7).

They Were Stopped

Daingerfield, Texas, June 22, 1980 - A former school teacher facing a trial for incest burst into the First Baptist Church during the Sunday morning service shouting, "This is war!" Firing an AR-15, he killed three and wounded eleven in the church. Two ushers grabbed him and wrestled him out of the church, where he killed them with a .22 pistol before wounding himself. The ushers stopped the assault at the expense of their lives. [3]

Colorado Springs, Colorado, December 9, 2007 - A young man who had attended New Life Church in his youth killed two and wounded two in the parking lot before entering the church. In the foyer, a former police officer on the security team shot and disabled him before he killed himself. She stopped the attack, saving many lives. [4]

Antioch, Tennessee, September 24, 2017 - A former member came back, after more than a year, just as the morning service ended. He killed one member in the parking lot, went into the church and wounded several more. A young man challenged him. The shooter wounded himself in a struggle for the weapon and was arrested. The young man stopped the rampage. [5]

Chicago Illinois, March 28, 2018 - An armed man walked into a Wednesday night meeting at the Maypole Avenue Church of Christ and announced it was a robbery. A church member with a concealed carry permit who works as an armed security guard challenged the robber. The member was shot in the arm, but the robber was hit a number of times. The robber left, but was soon arrested. The armed member stopped the robbery. [6]

The End Is the End

The final goal of an active shooter response is ending the attack by neutralizing the shooter. This is done by capturing, disabling, or putting down the killer. This is the fourth of the four emergency skills for an active killer situation: Evacuate, Hide, Call for help, and Engage the active killer.

Engagement

Some of us may think that engaging an active killer is the call of a select few. However, anybody on the scene should be prepared to engage the assailant if need be. Suppose the attacker comes into a room occupied by several people. Is this to be a shooting gallery? Or can those cornered there make a difference?

This is one of the lessons that should have been learned from the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech [7] (but hardly gets attention in an online search of the incident). It is that intended targets can turn into attackers, swarming the shooter. A killer can only shoot a few before being taken down, which is better than a whole room of dead bodies.

The Sheepdog Church Security training course "Active Shooter Neutralization and Lock Down Drills" says, "Escape and evasion should always be your first actions, but you may have to engage the killer... you should do everything to disrupt or incapacitate the active killer." Following are five steps to disrupt the killer's mind and actions:

Turn chaos and mayhem into an advantage and try to escape the area.
Cause sensory overload and distractions by yelling.
Throw whatever is available at the intruder's face.
Find anything you have that can be used as a weapon.
Swarm the intruder. Use large numbers of people to gain control.

There is more in the course.

As to the Safety/Security Ministry, the Safety Team should have an Engagement Team and a Containment Team. The Containment Team's task is to delay the assailant, to limit his movements, and to funnel him into a confined area. The Engagement Team focuses on capturing, disabling, or downing the attacker. These members should be trained in knowing when, where, and how to shoot to avoid injuring innocent persons. They also should know how to capture a disarmed shooter.

Conclusion

Be ready to respond to an active killer by preparing to end the rampage. Train everyone, especially the Safety Team, to disrupt and defeat the assailant.

References

Sheepdog Church Security, TrainingBundle, "Active Shooter Neutralization and Lock Down Drills v.3" [https://sheepdog-church-security.thinkific.com/courses/active-shooter-neutralization-and-lock-down-drills-training-bundle].
Sheepdog Church Security, OnlineTraining, "Active Shooter Neutralization and Lock Down Drills [https://sheepdog-church-security.thinkific.com/courses/active-shooter-neutralization-and-lock-down-drills].
"Alvin Lee King III", Murderpedia, [http://murderpedia.org/male.K/k/king-alvin-lee.htm].
Wikipedia, "2007 Colorado YWAM and New Life shootings" [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Colorado_YWAM_and_New_Life_shootings].
Boucher, D., J. Ebert, N. Allison, N. Rau, A. Wadhwani, and N. De Gennaro, "How the Nashville church shooting unfolded: A timeline", The Tennessean, Published 2:57 p.m. CT, Sept. 25, 2017 | Updated 12:08 a.m. CT, Sept. 26, 2017 [https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/crime/2017/09/25/how-nashville-church-shooting-burnette-chapel-church-christ-unfolded-timeline/700049001/].
Wilusz, L, "Man charged with shooting guard during robbery attempt at West Side church", Chicago Sun-Times [https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/man-charged-with-shooting-guard-during-robbery-attempt-at-west-side-church/].
Wikipedia, "Virginia Tech shooting" [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Tech_shooting].