textfiles/law/fbiaug04.law

August 1990                                                       

                                                                  
                     THE TACTICAL INCIDENT:
                    A TOTAL POLICE RESPONSE                   

                               By

                    Nicholas F. Kaiser, M.A.
                Assistant Chief, Chief of Patrol
                Troy, New York, Police Department
                                          
                                                                  
     With the advent of police tactical units, police managers 
needed to consider new organizational structures within their 
departments.  Accordingly, the development and testing of 
policies and procedures, along with opening new lines of 
authority and communications, became necessary.  In fact, 
individual units adopted policies written especially for them. 
These individualized policies outlined how each unit would and 
could function.  Specialization became the case in point.         

     Today, tactical units remain vital to any department's 
response to a critical situation.  However, they cannot operate 
within a vacuum and depend on the support of other units.  The 
critical situation requires all police units to work as one, not 
as individual entities.                                           

     Attaining this teamwork is essential to successfully contain 
a crisis situation.  One way is to implement Standard Operating 
Procedures (SOPs) and policies that foster teamwork through a 
properly guided training program, briefings, and a sensitivity to 
feedback.                                                         

     Initiating these policies and SOPs alleviates or eliminates 
many of the problems managers encounter.  For example, when an 
SOP clearly defines who has authority over the scene of an 
incident, and this is reinforced during training, authority 
probably will not be questioned during an actual crisis 
situation. (1)  In the same way, establishing a team concept helps 
to minimize jealousy on the part of nontactical officers. (2)        

     This article will discuss the importance of a coordinated 
response to crisis situations and the importance of each 
participating department in the incident.  It will also discuss 
how training, initiating appropriate policies and procedures, 
feedback, and briefings can improve a police department's total 
response to crisis situations.                                 

TEAM RESPONSE TO A CRISIS                                

Communications Officers                                           

     The communications department is the initial point of 
contact in most crisis situations.  In fact, the typical response 
begins with informing communications personnel, who then relay 
the facts to responding patrol units, investigators, tactical 
unit members, negotiators, and any other necessary personnel.  
The importance of clear, effective communication throughout the 
incident cannot be stressed enough.  And, since most 
communication between units reacting to a critical incident is 
conducted through the communications officers, the role of this 
position in a crisis is essential to the team concept.  In fact, 
most communication between units reacting to a critical incident 
is conducted through the communications officer.                

Patrol Units                                                      

     A responding patrol unit can resolve many calls before they 
escalate into a crisis situation.  But, subsequent intelligence 
information and the use of proper containment procedures are 
essential should such a crisis emerge.  An improper response by a 
responding unit could jeopardize the entire operation.            

     The most crucial moment of any critical situation is in the 
hands of the first officer on the scene. (3)  The objective of this 
officer is to isolate, analyze and contain the incident, request 
the tactical team if needed, and gather available intelligence. 
By initially assessing the scene with a concern for safety of 
citizens and officers, containing the subject(s) by establishing 
a preliminary inner perimeter, and gathering and relaying 
pertinent information, the first responding officer provides a 
vital link in the total police response to a critical situation.  

Investigators                                                     

     Usually, by the time the investigators arrive on the scene, 
the first responding officers have already gathered the 
intelligence and have contained the incident.  This information 
often deals with the types of weapons involved, the location of 
suspect(s), and whether there are hostages.  Investigators, 
therefore, must receive this information from these officers and 
then interview possible witnesses to update the intelligence. 
This information must then be made available to the other units  
involved, particularly the tactical unit whose mission and plan 
may be extremely dependent upon such information.  Tactical units 
should not be their own intelligence arm and, as such, should 
rely upon others charged with this responsibility. (4)               

Tactical and Negotiation Personnel                                

     Certainly, the tactical unit and the hostage negotiation 
team are integral parts of any police department's response to a 
crisis.  The tactical unit's role is essential should an 
incident escalate to a point wherein an organized assault may be 
needed.  The same holds true for the hostage negotiation team.  
At this point in the crisis situation, all other units become 
dependent upon an organized assault unit working with an 
experienced negotiation team.                                     

     Of course, every police manager would prefer to resolve 
these situations through skilled negotiation leading to a 
surrender of all offenders, but many times this is not the case 
and a tactical assault becomes the only alternative.  In such 
instances, the tactical unit's mission is to protect all involved 
and to arrest or neutralize the suspect(s).  Even so, other 
members of the department should be familiar with how tactical 
units operate and of their limitations when implementing a 
coordinated assault.                                            

K-9 Teams                                                         

     K-9 teams have also proven themselves to be useful in 
tactical situations. (5)  They can be  used to locate barricaded 
suspects, as part of entry and arrest teams, as diversions, and 
as psychological threats. (6)  As with tactical units, other units 
must also be familiar with the use of K-9 teams so that the  
total police response can be effectively coordinated.        

METHODS FOR IMPROVING TEAM RESPONSE                         

Training                                                          

     Proper training provides the foundation upon which to build 
a formidable response to critical situations.  In most 
departments, the tactical unit trains on a regular basis, 
sometimes with hostage negotiators, K-9 and other specialized 
units.  Unfortunately, most departments do not involve patrol 
officers or investigators in this type of training.  For tactical 
unit members, while the need for training with special tactical 
weapons and tools must not be underemphasized, training with 
other units that respond to crisis situations should also be on a 
regular basis.  By involving these other units in the training 
program, proper responses can be ensured.                         

     During training, the tactical unit should also demonstrate 
the use of various devices, such as diversionary devices, machine 
guns, and door-breaching, so that others may understand the 
benefits and limitations of each.  As a result, the confidence of 
other officers in the tactical unit and in their equipment will 
be reinforced.                                                    

     Inservice training, with a block of instruction on crisis 
situations, can also be useful.  Departments should consider 
involving all units in true-to-life scenario training at least 
twice a year.  However, care should be taken to ensure that all 
officers understand the nature of their roles and how their 
performance relates to the others.  Video tapes of these training 
sessions can be especially helpful.                        

Policies and Procedures                                           

     Many departments lack comprehensive policies for the 
coordination of tactical operations.  Therefore, departments 
should specify policies, SOPs, and procedures for tactical 
situations, such as the division of labor between each unit and  
how individual units fit into the entire plan.  In addition, 
since lines of authority may change at the scene of a critical 
incident, a written policy covering this area would effectively 
coordinate the operation and avoid confusion as to who is in 
command.  These principles regarding command should be clearly 
stated in the department's SOPs and reinforced in training and 
debriefings.                                                 

Outside Feedback                                                  

     Being sensitive to constructive criticism from sources 
outside the department can be useful in formulating an objective 
plan for improvement.  For example, almost without exception, 
crises capture the media's attention.  In fact, the media often 
will initiate a series of editorials as to how the incident might 
have been handled better.  In this case, it is important to not 
become defensive and to remain as objective as possible in order 
to respond carefully to each commentary.  Many times, useful 
information can be obtained from such editorials and can be used 
in future training.                                       

Briefings and Debriefings                                         

     Each critical incident must be viewed as an opportunity to 
learn and to prepare for the next event.  Briefings and 
debriefings, in particular, can be very effective in this regard 
and can also help to solidify cooperation among various units.  
Even though incidents occur without warning, thereby eliminating 
a complete, formal briefing, all officers should be briefed 
whenever possible in order to reduce the possibility of 
misunderstandings.  For example, perimeter personnel should be 
advised of the tactical unit's intention to use diversionary 
devices so that their use would not be misinterpreted as 
unfriendly fire.                                                  

     Accordingly, not only must the tactical unit debrief after 
each encounter, but everyone involved, such as patrol officers, 
investigators, K-9, and communications officers, should also 
participate in debriefings.  When these debriefings take place, 
officers should discuss what went wrong and, equally as 
important, what went right during a critical incident.  Even 
though strong emotions may arise, such as anger or fear, the end 
result will ultimately be objective learning.                     

     The normal course of events at a debriefing usually includes 
recognizing problems and successes, admitting any problems 
internally, admitting the problem to others, and developing a 
solution.  This can be difficult, because the tendency to blame 
others or oneself is hard to resist.  But, objectivity and an 
emphasis on learning will result in a successful debriefing in 
most cases.  Then, the various units should examine the overall  
plan and each officer involved must identify any mistakes. 
Finally, all the involved units should determine how to better 
handle the problems that arose during this particular critical 
incident should they reoccur.                            

CONCLUSION                                                        

     Increased specialization in police departments across the 
country enables them to respond to unusual situations with more 
expertise.  However, there are still instances where cooperation 
erodes at the scene of a crisis situation.  But, with a specific 
departmental plan that includes established policies and SOPs, 
police departments can avoid disadvantages of this nature and can 
develop and use their various skills to the fullest.              

     As time passes, the introduction of new technologies will 
bring even more increased specialization to law enforcement. 
Therefore, it has become more important that each specialty work 
cooperatively with others in the pursuit of law enforcement 
goals.  Only through teamwork and close cooperation between all 
law enforcement specialties can law enforcement agencies 
successfully conclude crisis situations.                   


FOOTNOTES                                                        

(1)  James W. Stevens and David W. MacKenna, ``Assignment and 
Coordination of Tactical Units,'' FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 
vol. 58, No. 3, March 1989, pp. 2-9.                              
     
(2)  Ibid.                                                       
     
(3)  John T. Dolan and G. Dwayne Fuselier, ``A Guide for First 
Responders to Hostage Situations,'' FBI Law Enforcement 
Bulletin, vol. 58, No.4, April 1989, pp. 9-13.                    
     
(4)  Captain Wade Y. Ishimoto, ``Intelligence Support of SWAT 
Operations,'' The Tactical Edge, vol. 2, No. 1, Winter 1984, pp. 
7-11.                                                             
     
(5)  VanNess H. Bogardus, III, ``The Application of K-9's to 
SWAT Operations,'' The Tactical Edge, vol. 1, No. 1, Fall 1983, 
pp. 19-22.                                                        
     
(6)  Donn Kraemer, ``The Application of Police Canines to 
Tactical Operations,'' The Tactical Edge, vol. 5, No. 1, Winter 
1987, pp. 39-41.