THINKING ABOUT THE UNTHINKABLE: Courthouse employees get a sobering lesson in survival tactics

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The "shooter" in the drill, sheriff's detective David Wood, is subdued by deputies as part of the exercise. Wood also went door to door on every floor of the courthouse, firing blank rounds outside offices so employees could hear what a gunshot sounds like. (Tom Russo | Daily Reporter)

HANCOCK COUNTY — Gunshot after gunshot echoed through the halls of the Hancock County Courthouse Wednesday afternoon.

The “pop-pop-pop” reverberated with each step the shooter took as he made his way from the front entrance of the courthouse to each of the three floors. The gunman, a sheriff’s detective who was part of an active-shooter drill, purposely fired a blank round outside every closed door where he thought people might be hiding.

After jiggling locked doorknobs and not being able to gain access to any of the secured rooms, the drill was over.

“Wow! That was pretty intense,” Judge Marie Castetter said, after she and her staff emerged from behind a locked door inside the Superior Court 1 area.

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County officials shut the doors of the courthouse to the community for two hours earlier this week so all courthouse employees could take part in a live-shooter training drill arranged by Sheriff Brad Burkhart and deputies from the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.

The program was designed to show employees, who work in a stressful environment where emotions can run high, that they can do certain things to keep themselves safe if the worst ever happens.

“This is a good type of hands-on training for the staff,” said Maj. Bobby Campbell, chief deputy of the sheriff’s department. “The more you are familiar with something, the less time it takes to react.”

Hancock County Circuit Court Judge Scott Sirk is a part of the county’s school safety committee. He noted how informative shooter training drills are for county administrators and teachers. After discussing the idea with the county’s other judges, they decided to present the same program to courthouse employees.

“This type of training is the best thing we’ve got to get people prepared,” Sirk said. “You hope and pray it never happens, but it’s better to do this, maybe every couple of years to help save lives.”

Making a plan and preparing is one thing, Sirk said. But experiencing the situation, hearing shots fired and watching employees spring into action to lock and barricade doors, was something else.

“I was with my staff and we were hiding,” Sirk said. “We were very quiet, and we barricaded the door.”

Burkhart held the first part of the training at the Hancock County Courthouse Annex, where he gave a slide presentation offering safety tips learned from past shooter situations. He shared things like the three stages of a disaster response; denial, deliberation and decisive moments.

As he has done in other presentations, Burkhart was frank. If people can’t barricade themselves and hide until help arrives, they might have to fight a shooter. The idea was to teach employees to shrink their decision-making time, knowing seconds can save lives and that just shutting a door or hiding behind a table isn’t going to stop someone intent on killing.

“We need to teach people how to protect themselves until we can get there or our security guys can help,” said Capt. Robert Harris, communications director for the department, referring to the armed deputies who work in the courthouse whenever it’s open.

Having the courthouse staff trained can also help keep the community safe, Harris said, noting that hundreds of people file in and out of the courthouse each week.

Becky Robinson and Robin Spille, who work in the election office, said Burkhart’s message was eye-opening.

“It was helpful, but I’m a little nervous now,” Robinson said. “We never know who we’ve got coming through the door.”

Spille said it was better to be prepared than to just wait for something to happen and hope they can handle it.

“I’m glad they’re going to fire off shots in the courthouse because we hear sounds in the courthouse all the time that are loud,” Spille said.

The biggest part of the drill was to help the employees know what real shots sound like. That’s where detective David Wood, an eight-year department veteran, came in.

He acted as the gunman. Entering the courthouse, he drew his weapon, which was loaded with blanks, and fired at Campbell, who was playing the role of a citizen entering the courthouse. That action caused the sheriff’s normal security detail at the front doors to spring into action and put Wood on the ground.

Once that part of the drill was over, Wood was turned loose for the next part of the drill. He made his way through the rest of the courthouse, floor by floor, firing shots, trying to get into doors, doing everything he could to simulate an active shooter looking for victims.

“It was good to do this,” Wood said.

Wood is the department’s firearms instructor and said the employees listened well during the training. They did their best to secure and protect themselves during the drill.

“I’m in and out of here pretty regularly with court, and this was the most secure that I’ve ever seen it,” Wood said. “It’s the desired response we’d like to see.”

After the shooter drill, Burkhart debriefed the employees. Everyone, even on the third floor, and in the building’s attic, heard shots being fired, indicating sound travels well in the courthouse.

That’s a good thing.

“You’d probably be able to identify (shots) in here more than you would in most buildings,” Burkhart said.

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Active Shooter Safety Pocket Card Information:

An active shooter is an individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area, typically through the use of firearms.

What to do when an active shooter is in your area:

Evacuate:

• Have an escape route and plan in mind, always take note of the two nearest exits in any facility visited

• Leave your belongings behind

• Keep your hands visible

Hideout:

• Hide in an area out of the shooter’s view

• If you are in an office, stay there and secure the door

• Block entry to your hiding place and lock the doors

• Silence your cell phone and/or pager

• Be aware of your environment and any possible dangers

Take Action:

• As a last resort and only when your life is in imminent danger

• Attempt to incapacitate the shooter

• Act with physical aggression and throw items at the active shooter

Call 911 when safe to do so:

• Location of the active shooter

• Number of shooters

• Physical description of shooters

• Number and type of weapons held by shooters

• Number of potential victims at the location

What to do when Law Enforcement arrives:

• Remain calm and follow instructions

• Put down any items in your hands (i.e., bags, jackets)

• Raise hands and spread fingers

• Keep hands visible at all times

• Avoid quick movements toward officers such as holding on to them for safety

• Avoid pointing, screaming or yelling

• Do not stop to ask officers for help or direction when evacuating

Source: United States Department of Homeland Security

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