What's on the other side of the door?

What's on the other side of the door?

I recently met with a group of special operations professionals at a large sheriff’s office in Florida. The group represented the SWAT, EOD and crisis negotiations disciplines. While all of the men were at a senior command level, none were classic “administrators.” Each was active with their teams—they did the dynamic entry, wore the bomb suit, and manned the throw phone with barricaded subjects.

Put another way, they were still on the front lines. They still do the job.

That’s an important point to consider when talking about officer safety on a high-risk call out. These guys deal with the issue first-hand, and their views on how to conduct joint operations more safely and with more efficiency were pretty much in step with what I’d say is current and contemporary. All three of them saw the value of technology, particularly the use of rapidly deployed on-scene surveillance systems, robot penetration into a hot zone, and the sharing of and access to live video from multiple sources on-the-fly and securely.

On the surface, relative agreement among a group of special ops officers doesn’t seem particularly noteworthy. But, it is for a couple of obvious reasons. First, it shows that technologies that were new and novel--and maybe a little experimental—just a few years ago are now seen as emerging necessities today. Second, it hints at the trend toward inter-squad operations (EOD/SWAT/Negotiators) that is becoming more and more the norm (not in my former agency, sadly, but in others all across the country). And finally, it speaks volumes about the change from “old school” operations that steered away from technology as too new, too expensive and somehow too likely to detract from good police work.

The Old School is still with us. I know, those of you who are reading a blog are less likely to BE one of those people or even to believe they still exist, but they do. Thankfully, not as much as even a couple of years ago.

 I deal with all levels of law enforcement, from patrol guys to top-level brass. Climbing the ranks to the top of the chain of command does not usually come without a lot of experience as one of the boots on the ground. Most senior leaders in law enforcement have slogged their way up from patrol to stripes then brass, often with side trips (or whole careers) on special ops teams. Most remember what it’s like to be stacked up next to the door of a drug house or standing hours in the summer heat directing traffic. But, many remember it only as a concept—as part of a good cop story—but not as a part of daily life. So, when they are asked “What is necessary to do the job well and safely?” they are more likely to answer what was true a decade-and-a-half ago: five good guys, a ram and maybe a flash bang.

Today’s SWAT commander knows the value of technology to a tactical officer. While stacking outside a door behind which lies any sort of unknown danger is certainly do-able, who wouldn’t want to have a robot or pole cam peeking in a window to get some intel on what’s inside? Of course, that info is usually relayed to the team by radio.

Take it a step further. How much better would it be to have that sneek peek delivered to your ruggedized smart phone while you are stacked outside that door?

When presented with that option, the SWAT commander I was meeting with said, “Yeah. I want that. That’s a no-brainer.” And he’s right.

Having been one of those guys who went through a few doors behind which were some not-so-right-in-the-head people with varying types of armament, I know the lack of intel can be disconcerting. I remember asking the terrified wife of a despondent man barricaded in a bedroom if he was armed. Her response was, “No. Yes, Well, maybe. He has two pistols and a shotgun…and they might be in there with him. Or not. I really don’t know.”

I would have liked to have at least some idea of what we were getting ourselves into. A robot peeping through the window would have been great. Having that video delivered to me and my three companions in the hallway would have been like Christmas in July.

Technology, for all professions and socio-economic classes, has gone mainstream. Computing power was once held only by a few wealthy companies. Now, elementary school kids carry iPhones capable of accessing unlimited data at the drop of a virtual hat. It follows that the same technology—personified by the smart phone and tablet—that allows us to find our way across town and Google the answers to just about any question will also allow law enforcement access to live video and current information that will help keep officers safe and help yield bad situations end well.

Personally, I like the idea of democratizing the information that is available on-scene. Instead of a commander seeing video feeds, deciding what it important in it and relaying that info to the boots on the ground, it makes sense that the actual officers whose lives depend on it get to review the intel. View then act. Look then leap.

My barricaded subject in the bedroom story ended the way a good cop story should. We went in like gangbusters, surprised him before he could pick up either of the pistols or the shotgun that was on the bed three feet from him. We lucked out. He happened to walk away and had his back to his weapons. It would have been really nice NOT to have had to rely on luck, wouldn’t it?


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Naturally, given that I work for a company that is on the cutting edge of this kind of technology, I am particularly interested in the opinions of those of you on the front lines. What would help you do your job better? What kind of data is necessary to help keep you and your fellow officers safe? Take a look at the link above to see what we have now and tell what you think.