By CODE 4 K9 | SWAT/K9 Integration & Advanced Police K9 Training

Patrol responds to a possible hostage call at an apartment complex in the Brentwood area. The reportee states that her mom was with her ex-husband and that he was standing in front of her, restricting her movement, and that he was armed with a handgun. She also states that her mother and the ex-husband were mobile in the apartment complex and was adamant that responding units not respond with their lights and sirens because it would only escalate the situation.

The video picks up with an officer interviewing the daughter. The officer is trying to figure out where in the complex her mom and her ex-husband were located. This is an excellent call by the officer. Without knowing her mom's location, they would randomly wander through the complex, wasting valuable time and hoping to get lucky. I have a rule: if bullets aren’t flying and people aren’t dying, we can slow things down a bit. Taking 30 seconds to gather intel can make or break your response.

While speaking to the daughter, officers heard a gunshot coming from the complex. Immediately, you can hear one of the officers say, “We've got to go.” I want to hug this dude. This officer 100% understands the safety priorities. In addition, they had a react team ready to go as a contingency plan for stimulus. Honestly, you can’t get any better than that. It’s a good reminder that when responding to calls like this, mindset plays a critical role in how you react.

Officers begin searching the complex methodically after losing stimulus. Something that I probably would have done is have a react team go to mom’s apartment in case the suspect forces her back to it. That just improves our percentage of locating the suspect and victim. One of the officers spots the suspect in the complex and is immediately shot at by the suspect. The officer seeks cover behind a parked car and loses visual of the suspect.

Officers continue searching when one of them verbally engages a person in the complex who was not associated with the incident. Shortly after, officers heard more gunshots and quickly narrowed the suspect’s location. You can see one of the officers hesitate from moving forward and is quickly told by one of the other officers that this was a hostage call and they needed to go. Again, fantastic job by this officer in understanding who the priority was. On a side note, I’m not trying to bash on the officer who hesitated; it’s a normal reaction. However, you must be able to compartmentalize that hesitation and let the safety priorities dictate your course of action.

The officer who initiated the forward movement toward the suspect spots the suspect tucked into the foyer of an apartment. He had a limited view of the suspect due to the railing to the second floor being in the way. He pushed closer to where the suspect and the victim were located and shot at the suspect. This is a 100% good shoot. The officer had already met all ethics, law, and policy. The suspect had the PRESENT ABILITY, PRESENT OPPORTUNITY, AND APPARENT HOSTILE INTENT. Those words are in all caps because it’s important. It’s not enough to know in your gut that your actions were justified; you have to be able to articulate it. If you can’t, people will assume that you just got lucky.

The video then shows that the single shot from the officer’s rifle penetrated one of the vertical bars in the railing, and fragmentation from the round struck both the victim and the suspect. The fragmentation was enough to incapacitate the suspect temporarily. That allowed the officers to finish their rescue of the victim.

There are very few videos where I can’t find something wrong. This is one of the rare exceptions where I have nothing to say other than great job. Stay safe.