In truth, women perform valuable functions on the SWAT teams in the roles of negotiators, even if they can’t pass the physicality tests to breach buildings. The physical tests are not adjusted in most jurisdictions, so women must do the same pushups and gear carries that men do. The capability to shoot is never in question, but sometimes the willingness to shoot is a factor in the negative thinking. There is a certain gender bias that women must fight against in the job, mostly because it is thought by some that a woman may not be strong enough or tough minded enough to carry through in a hostile situation. Often, negotiators are specifically assigned to the SWAT teams. Many of today’s police departments have a greater social work component to hostage situations than in the past, so a hostage negotiator gets involved before SWAT starts knocking down doors. In big cities, that would never be an issue, but in smaller, less populated areas with fewer SWAT-needed situations, it might become a factor. If the team stays trained and never gets called upon, that can be tough on morale – “when am I going to be able to show what I can do?” It’s like a fine-tuned machine that never gets used. Team members are always ready for the callout, so training is intense and constant. For a set period of time (6-12 months in various departments) after training, Field Training Officers (FTO) guide rookie SWAT officers through the many different scenarios that may occur. The men and women in SWAT have a warrior mindset and are confident in the fact that they will get the job done, that they are the best candidates for the job, and they are not afraid of being under fire.

Now, more and more often, they are being trained in active shooter scenarios in order to be pro-active in the minutes before a SWAT team can arrive. It’s important to note that school patrol personnel might have been employed a few years ago to keep drug dealers off the campus just by their very presence, without any expectation of violent confrontation. This way, the law enforcement groups on the scene will know that the children have nothing hidden in their hands and/or are not being used to create more chaos or danger for the waiting crowd(s). Past experience has shown that in situations like school shootings or bank robberies where a number of people are involved, everyone, including small children, is asked to leave the building with hands up in the air. Other jurisdictions may be called in to help. The civilians are cleared out before a SWAT assault begins. The participants are identified and divided into categories: The National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA) sets the standard for the country for the management and protocols in a hostage situation. If there is no hostage in the house, with just one person in an isolated place, then a negotiator might be used, since the safety of others and time considerations would not generally be a factor. The goal is to end it sooner rather than later. A hostage rescue is the most complex and the most man power intensive of the possible assignments. High Risk Search Warrant Services (i.e.

The Wisconsin department we observed was a 40 person department, with a SWAT team of 10, including two snipers. Wichita Falls has a little over 200 sworn officers, with a SWAT team of 18.

The Wichita Falls, Texas, Police Department SWAT Team members are trained in everything from Hostage Rescue to Dignitary Protection during a 60 hour basic SWAT school. SWAT team members always have experience in other agencies or departments before applying to and being accepted into this specialized arena.ĭepending on the needs of the towns/counties, SWAT teams are larger or smaller, relative to the size and needs of the rest of the police force.

LAPD organized their own program around the same time, but the focus was different, using their teams during civil unrest and riots, when people attacked police and attempted to overwhelm them from all sides. Philly established a large team whose sole responsibility was to combat the rising number of bank robberies in the city, hoping to stop them in progress. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has the reputation of creating the first SWAT teams in the USA, but Philadelphia coined the Special Weapons and Tactics phrase first, in 1964. When we hear that a SWAT team has been deployed, we know that a serious law-enforcement-required incident and threat to public safety has occurred, which may be beyond the scope of the typical police department or first responder. stands for Special Weapons and Tactics, implying a special level of training and weaponry for the team members.

Philly fbi hostage rescue team