The tragedy at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, left 19 young children, two teachers dead, and many others injured. The 18-year-old assailant sucker-punched the conscience of America once again, becoming an all too familiar, almost weekly mass shooting headline story that leaves us frightened about the safety of our children and communities.
The immediate questions are, what did law enforcement do in this situation, and what can we do individually and as a community?
Indeed, some valid questions and concerns must be addressed to prevent future tragedies. Joining us in this discussion is police officer Michael Letts, CEO of InVest USA, a charitable organization that provides active shooter vests to police.
1) If, from previous tragedies, it had been determined that keeping a school locked down for the day with only one screened point of entry is best, how did this school’s side door get propped open shortly before the assailant arrived– who authorized it and why?
2) When the call of an Active Shooter went out, Protocol is the immediate engagement of the shooter by the first officer/s on the scene. Why was it changed to a barricaded assailant, allowing him additional time for gunfire? Many of these children may have still been alive had proven protocols been followed. Why did we see such a different scenario unfold?
3) The victims needed to be reached ASAP, thus demanding that the Active Shooter Status stay in effect, requiring immediate containment and elimination of the threat…….where is the paper trail of communication, authorization, etc. to change the status?
4) While it is always easy to second guess, these and other questions are valid. On the one hand, we need to support our America’s heroes, the brave First Responders who immediately come on the scene to save lives. But on the other hand, there are the bosses of our heroes in in blue. What happens when there are conflicting orders and protocols, such as what we witnessed in this school shooting? Police were reportedly ordered to stand down, resulting in a 50-minute delay before police entered the school. What would you have done if you were in that situation? Would you have waited nearly one hour before entering?
5) Tell us about InVest USA and how you help police get bulletproof vests to respond better to situations such as what we discussed.
6) Where may we get additional information about InVest USA? https://InVestUSA.org/
About Michael Letts:
Michael Letts is the Founder, President, and CEO of In-Vest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. Those interested in learning more about Letts can visit his official website here.
CONTACT: Gerald McGlothlin at: jerry.specialguests@gmail.com
