Why IMPD officers will conduct public active shooter training using a Columbine 911 call

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police this week will conduct a civilian active shooter response training featuring audio of a 911 call made from inside Columbine High School during the 1999 massacre.

Officers with the department's Northwest District will host a Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events training at 6 p.m. Aug. 21 at the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana, 7201 Girl Scout Lane. The free class open to the public and intended for teens and adults is built on a strategy called Avoid, Deny, Defend and will cover civilian response options and tips on how to conduct drills.

However, a recent presentation at a Muncie school that also incorporated Columbine 911 call audio drew concerns about its effect on children.

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IMPD Officer Madeline Green told IndyStar on Monday the training is adult-oriented and that children age 13 and up should attend only under adult supervision. The point of using the audio, she said, is to show how the teacher described the incident to dispatchers and demonstrate how strategies have changed over time.

"Before we present, we will tell the adults that this is very sensitive. If you feel that you cannot sit through this whole audio portion, you are welcome to leave," she said. "It can be stressful for some."

The 911 call 

The training is part of a curriculum designed by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center at Texas State University. Since 2002, the center has trained more than 130,000 first responders and 200,000 civilians in active-shooter preparedness.

Wednesday's training given by IMPD will feature a roughly four-minute audio clip of a 911 call made by Patti Nielson, a teacher who was hiding in the school's library, Green said. Most of the shooters' 13 victims were killed in or near the library, where the two perpetrators ultimately died by suicide.

Listening to the audio clip, it's possible to hear gunshots, Green said, but it primarily features Nielson's conversation with the 911 operator. At several points during the recording, Nielson, who survived the shooting, can be heard screaming at students to stay hidden and take refuge under tables.

In the 20 years since the shooting, parts of the call have been used in news reports, documentaries and active-shooter curriculum.

Recently, some parents of students in grades 6-12 at Burris Laboratory School in Muncie voiced concerns that a similar presentation was given during a school assembly, potentially traumatizing the children, Today reported.

A spokesperson for Ball State University, which manages the school, said only two parents voiced their concerns regarding use of the audio. 

"It is unfortunate that schools across the country have to conduct this type of training," the university said in a written statement, "but it is our responsibility to educate and empower students on what to do in the event of an emergency."

Be prepared

When reached Monday by IndyStar, ALERRT Executive Director Pete Blair said the audio is not included in the most up-to-date version of the curriculum, but the version with the audio can still be used as an educational tool. 

He stressed that its use is not a criticism of the teacher's actions that day, but rather an example of why it's important for people to think about how they would act in these situations so they can be adequately prepared.

"(Columbine is) really the start of what we call the modern era of active shooter events, and these things weren’t really on anyone’s radar," Blair said. "It's used to illustrate how important it is to think through those events beforehand."

Unfortunately, Green said, classes like this are an essential way to prepare people.

"If you’ve watched the news then you’ll know that a lot of these events occur outside of schools or work," she said. "They occur at the Walmart, movie theater, airport, church. So, for us, we’re pretty passionate about educating people and letting them know that this just doesn’t happen in schools or at the workplace, it happens in those places that we all go to."

For more information or to RSVP, email madeline.green@indy.gov.

Call IndyStar reporter Holly Hays at 317-444-6156. Follow her on Twitter: @hollyvhays.