Active Shooters: Is Law Enforcement Ready for a Mumbai Style Attack? Columbine Massacre, Klebold and Harris, Virginia Polytechnic, Gabrielle Giffords, Aurora Colorado, Beslan Massacre

Between April 16, 2007, and December 14, 2012, the United States has seen 25 mass shootings, seven of which occurred in 2012. A report by United States Department of Homeland Security, in 2009, suggested that the United States will be the target of a terrorist act that could cause a high number of casualties.

The November 26, 2008, attack on Mumbai is a transparent example of how determined terrorists, trained to die fighting, can bring a large metropolitan city to its knees. It is entirely probable that Mumbai-type attacks could occur in the United States. Since the local law enforcement respond to attacks in progress, any active shooter event would be handled by the local jurisdiction. Many law enforcement agencies have begun to incorporate tactical plans to respond to Mumbai-type terrorist attacks.

This thesis focused on police preparedness of select large metropolitan law enforcement agencies for potential Mumbai-type terrorist attacks. A comparative analysis of these police agencies was conducted, which showed that the frequency of training was found to be varying and inadequate by these agencies. A similar concern was that none of the agencies had equipped all the police officers with rifles, which were deemed critical to engage well-equipped active shooters.

It is the conclusion of the thesis that gaps in preparedness exist and law enforcement organizations have room for improvement. It was also concluded that agencies need to enhance communication capability between neighboring jurisdictions and focus on triage of the victims during the early stages of attacks when medical personnel would be unable to approach.

Topics and subjects covered include: The Columbine massacre, Klebold and Harris, multiple active shooters, the Beslan school massacre, the Mumbai terrorist attack, North Hollywood bank robbery and shootout, the Virginia Polytechnic shooting, the Gabrielle Giffords shooting, the Aurora Colorado shooting, Seung-Hui Cho, Jared Lee Loughner, James Holmes, Taj Mahal Palace hotel.

CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION * A. HYPOTHESIS * B. RESEARCH QUESTIONS * C. METHODOLOGY * D. DATA ANALYSIS * CHAPTER II - LITERATURE REVIEW * A. INTRODUCTION * B. ACTIVE SHOOTER * C. CONCLUSION * CHAPTER III - CASE STUDIES * A. INTRODUCTION * B. DOMESTIC ACTIVE SHOOTER INCIDENTS * NORTH HOLLYWOOD BANK ROBBERY AND SHOOTOUT * C. COLUMBINE MASSACRE * D. VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE AND STATE UNIVERSITY * E. GABRIELLE GIFFORDS * F. AURORA COLORADO SHOOTING * G. MULTIPLE ACTIVE SHOOTERS * 1. Beslan Russia School Massacre * 2. Mumbai Terrorist Attack * H. CONCLUSIONS * CHAPTER IV - COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE LEVEL OF PREPAREDNESS OF SELECT LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES * A. INTRODUCTION * B. POLICY OF THE LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT * C. INTERVIEWS WITH LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT * D. POLICY OF THE LAS VEGAS METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT * E. INTERVIEWS WITH THE LAS VEGAS METROLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT * F. POLICY OF CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT * G. INTERVIEWS WITH CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT * H. POLICY OF NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT * I. INTERVIEW WITH NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT * J. CONCLUSION * CHAPTER V - ANALYSIS * A. INTRODUCTION * B. COMMUNICATION * C. COMMAND AND CONTROL * D. TRAINING * E. MEDICAL ISSUES * F. CONCLUSION * CHAPTER VI - RECOMMENDATIONS/CONCLUSION