A man entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February 2018 and started shooting, killing 17 victims. Outside, one deputy did not enter the school. Now, one lawmaker wants to assure all first responders have standardized training to effectively respond to an active shooter.
Law enforcement conducts active shooter training all the time. WINK News observed one of those training sessions in Immokalee in September. It is involved, improving tactical abilities and helps set policies along with procedures. Even K-9s were in training to enhance their response.
Florida Sen. Lauren Book (D-32), who also serves on the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission, wants to make active shooter training standardized with her bill SB 788. That involves how to respond to an active shooter report; how the media and affected parties would be notified; and, who will respond to the shooting and how.
The design of the training would be overseen by the Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement. FDLE would create it as a minimum standard, with law enforcement having the option to do additional training. Each law enforcement agency within the state would have to set up an active shooter preparedness plan by Jan. 1, 2021.