Being trained and prepared ahead of time helps in active attack situations

Active attack situations are on the rise in today’s world. Unfortunately, they are also hitting closer to home.

According to data from avoiddenydefend.org, active shooter events have been identified in these areas over the last decade.

• 40% businesses
• 9% schools
• 19% outdoors
• 12% other places

It is wise to stay alert to your surroundings and always be vigilant when in public places. Learning as much as one can about how to react during moments of crisis is necessary, and Choctaw Nation is helping to spread the word about how to do just that.

Choctaw Nation Department of Public Safety and Lt. Nathan Hill provide tribal departments, civilians and law enforcement agencies with active attack training through the Texas State University Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT), a program created 22 years ago after the Columbine High School massacre.

Lt. Hill said of the training, “It’s broken down into civilian and law enforcement training. Civilian training is provided to Choctaw Nation employees, from new hire basic orientation all the way up to in-service for departments and divisions.”

He explained, “For law enforcement, it is part of their new hire academy now where they do active shooter response training. For security, we also mandate they go through basic active shooter response the same as law enforcement.”

“Anybody that has the need that we’re able to deliver the training for, we try to fulfill,” he confirmed. He said there had not been a national program before ALERRT for law enforcement officers that gave them training and data to push out and get officers to learn from. The program even teaches how to apply medical treatment for those who are first on the scene until the appropriate medical professionals arrive, which is vital in crisis situations.

Lt. Hill also trains law enforcement officers and first responders nationally through Texas State University’s program, funded through sources such as the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office of the Department of Justice and the State of Texas to train law enforcement to respond to active threat situations rapidly.

The Active Attack Integrated Response training is also taken to fire departments, law enforcement and EMS.

“It teaches the integrated response, and as far as us going from stop the killing to stop the dying, and now we’re fixing that problem together, ” Lt. Hill explained.

Choctaw Nation Department of Public Safety Chief of Police Jesse Petty said, “It is vitally important that CNDPS empowers our citizens with the knowledge and ability to help them survive in an active attack situation. The national average for Law Enforcement to get boots on the ground in an active attack situation is approximately three minutes. What citizens do with those three minutes matters. It is crucial that the public has rehearsed and mentally mapped their responses in high stress critical moments. The training we deliver does just that. We look forward to continued partnerships with our citizens and hardening our communities.”

Chief Petty continued, “CNDPS Command Staff would like to give thanks to Chief Batton and Assistant Chief Austin Jr. for their support and commitment to allowing our personnel to maintain a readiness to respond and ability to educate tribal members and employees.”

By remembering the easy-to-remember terminology of “Avoid, Deny and Defend,” it makes it easier to recall the tips taught through the training.

Watch the Avoid | Deny | Defend video below or on YouTube and see an overview of how to save your life in an active attack event.

For more information on the training, please call 800-522-6170.