Policy Text
Policy
433Garden Grove Police Department
Policy Manual
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/12/12, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Garden Grove Police
DepartmentActive Threats - 1Active Threats
433.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
The purpose of this policy is to establish the guidelines of the Garden Grove Police Department to
identify factors that will assist responding officers as they make decisions during rapidly evolving
and tense situations involving violence in schools, workplaces, and any other location where an
individual or a group of individuals present an immediate and active threat to public safety.
433.1.1 DEFINITIONS
Casualty Collection Point – A designated safe and secure location for fire/medical personnel
to triage and treat casualties.
Force Protection – A team of officers specifically assigned to a designated team of fire/medical
rescue personnel responsible for medical treatment and evacuation of casualties in a secure area
or a
Hot Zone – An area perceived as an immediate threat to first responders where the suspect(s)
actively pose a threat of death or serious physical injury to others.
Warm Zone - to a pre-designated Casualty Collection Point.
Warm Zone – An area possibly containing casualties which is not perceived as an immediate
threat to police or fire personnel.
433.2 POLICY
The policy of the Garden Grove Police Department when addressing a crisis situation involving
an active immediate threat shall be:
(a) Respond, obtain, and maintain complete operative control of the incident.
(b)To obtain every reasonable available source of intelligence regarding
the circumstances, location, and suspect(s) in the incident.
(c)To attempt, by every means available, to attain any tactical advantage over the
individuals(s) responsible for the threat.
(d)When an immediate threat and emergency exists, the officer should pursue and use
the force that is reasonably necessary to stop the threat and minimize injury and loss
of life.
(e)To attempt, whenever practical, a negotiated surrender of the suspect(s) and the
release of hostages through the expertise of the members of this department or other
subject matter experts.
Nothing in this policy shall preclude the use of necessary force, deadly or otherwise, by members
of this department in protecting themselves or others from deadly or serious injury.
Garden Grove Police Department
Policy Manual
Active Threats
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/12/12, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Garden Grove Police
DepartmentActive Threats - 2433.3 THREAT RESPONSE
If there is a reasonable belief that acts or threats by a suspect(s) are placing lives in imminent
danger, first responding officers should consider reasonable options to immediately contact and
engage the threat. Officers must decide, often under a multitude of difficult and rapidly evolving
circumstances, whether to advance on the suspect(s), take other immediate actions, or wait for
additional resources.
When deciding on a course of immediate action officers should consider:
(a)Whether sufficient personnel are on-scene to advance on the suspect. Any
advancement on suspect(s), when practical, should be made in teams of two or more
officers.
(b)Whether individuals who are under imminent threat can be moved out of danger with
reasonable safety.
(c)Whether the officers have the ability to effectively communicate with other personnel
on scene or responding to the scene.
(d)Whether planned tactics can be effectively deployed.
(e)The immediate availability of appropriate equipment or tools (i.e. rifles, shields,
breaching equipment), and whether the deployment of these tools will provide a
tactical advantage to officers.
(f)In the event of a barricade suspect with no hostages and no immediate threat to
others exists, officers and/or supervisors should consider requesting and waiting for
additional assistance and resources (i.e. SWAT-HNT).
(g)If a suspect is actively engaged in the infliction of serious bodily harm or other
life-threatening activity towards others, the officer should take immediate action, if
reasonably possible, to stop the threat presented by the suspect while calling for
additional assistance.
As with any critical incident, once control of the suspect(s) and or threat has been achieved,
the immediate care for injured or wounded individuals will be the first priority of officers and/or
supervisor(s) on scene. The following should be considered when rendering medical aid:
(a)The location(s), the number, and the nature of the individuals' wounds or injuries (i.e.
MCI-Mass Casualty Incident).
(b)Whether the officers have the ability to effectively treat the injured victims or if medical
personnel need to be brought to the location of the wounded.
(c)If medical personnel need to be brought into a secured area or a potential "Warm
Zone" the unified response protocol of the fire authority through force protection will be
assessed and implemented in order to ensure immediate medical aid to the wounded.
(d)In the event a "Warm Zone" becomes a "Hot Zone" the force protection personnel
will immediately extract the fire/medical personnel from the area which poses the
immediate threat.
Garden Grove Police Department
Policy Manual
Active Threats
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2022/12/12, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by Garden Grove Police
DepartmentActive Threats - 3The following shall be accomplished as soon as practical by the supervisor in charge of the scene
or the incident commander once the threat has been controlled and the medical protocol has been
establish:
(a)Securing the exterior and interior of the location - perimeter containment.
(b)Securing a common radio frequency for unified command and control.
(c)Logistical support through mutual aid.
(d)Establish a "Quarantine" collection area to assist in the efforts of identifying victims,
witnesses, and potential suspect(s)