Crimes against Children Digest 6-30-14

Former Army Soldier Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder of His 5-Year-Old Daughter 

Florence Couple Pleads Guilty to Producing Child Pornography

Petersburg Man Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Distribution, Receipt, and Possession of Child Pornography 

League City Registered Sex Offender Gets Significant Sentence for Multiple Child Pornography Convictions 

Lake Andes Man Convicted of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child 

Mission Man Charged with Child Abuse and Assault 

Troy Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Pornography 
  
Washington County Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Receiving Child Pornography

Baltimore Man Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking of a Minor 

Former Escambia and Santa Rosa School Teacher Sentenced on Federal Child Pornography Charges

Data Shows Violent School Deaths are Rare

Violent School Deaths

After the Troutdale, OR shooting a group founded by Michael Bloomberg called Everytown for Gun Safety posted a map of 74 school shootings since Sandy Hook.  Since then the data used to make that map has been found to be seriously flawed.  In fact, a Bureau of Justice report shows that violence in schools is on the decline.

When looking specifically at school-associated violent deaths, the Pew Research Center found that they are in the decline, with the exception of the 26 people killed at Sandy Hook.  From the Pew Research report, "Such incidents are as rare as they are tragic. In 2010-11, for instance, 11 children and youths (ages 5 to 18) were murdered at school, less than 1% of the 1,336 total homicides among that age group that year; suicides at school were even rarer."

Analysis

The Pew Research report does acknowledge there is difficulty in getting accurate and timely numbers, but it would seem from this research and the report Relative Risks of Death in U.S. K12 Schools, that there is an effort to inflate the dangers in schools.  This may be done unintentionally or with an agenda in mind, but school leaders need to get back to using a critical eye to evaluate any changes in approaches used by their schools.

Michael Dorn and Chris Dorn of Safe Havens International, have authored a training course through SafeSchools Training, Active Shooter for Administrators.  Courses like this one are based on research and valid evidence, and will prove much more useful than programs that are not research or evidence-based.

Actice Shooter Incidents are low-probabillity, high impact events.  While they should factor into a school's emergency planning, schools should not make such planning out of alignment with the other emergencies for which they prepare.

Crimes against Children Digest 6-26-14

Santostee Man Sentenced to 27 Months for Assaulting Navajo Teenager 

Maryland Man Convicted of Transporting a Minor Across State Lines for Prostitution  

Former Eagle Resident Sentenced to 96 Months in Prison for Child Sexual Exploitation Offenses

Former Lawrence Resident Sentenced for Distributing Child Pornography 

Mission Woman Charged with Child Abuse

Illegal Alien Gets Maximum Sentence for Distribution of Child Pornography

Roscoe Man Sentenced to 295 Months in Federal Prison for Transporting Child Pornography via the Internet

Rochester Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge 

Fourth Grade Teacher Pleads Guilty to Coercing and Enticing a 15-Year-Old Girl in Sexually Explicit Online Chats 

Youngstown Man Sentenced to 90 Years in Prison for Exploiting Children

Good Samaritan Laws and School Emergency Management Training

Good Samaritan Laws

The article in the above link raised a serious question for school safety trainers.  Kathi Lilga, executive assistant to the superintendent of Mountain View Whisman School District on California was reporting to the school board about modifications to their emergency plans called "Run Hide Defend". 

The interesting part was where she commented on teachers who might hesitate to make critical decisions during an Active Shooter Incident.  The article stated, “It also means a bad call could put lives at risk, but Lilga said that should not affect staff decisions. She said they are covered by Good Samaritan laws, which prevents people from being liable for civil damages if they act in good faith to help in emergency situations.”

Now that may be true in California, although a cursory glance at California's "Good Samaritan Law" did not seem to support this statement.  I emailed Dr. Dave Emmert, Chief Counsel for the Indiana School Boards Association, and asked him about Indiana's "Good Samaritan Laws".

He responded, in part, "It would not apply to an emergency situation such as a shooting at school, unless the school employee is rendering emergency medical-type care to an already injured person. In other words, it does not apply to an employee who decides to hit a shooter over the head with a hammer."  He went on to write, "If an employee negligently makes a decision during a shooting that results in further harm to persons, there is no immunity, and the school would be liable in damages."

So in Indiana, employees are not given immunity from liability for their decisions during an Active Shooter Incident, nor are schools given immunity for the training they give their employees.  it is important that schools, and school safety trainers, check with pertinent state laws to see what liabilities they may face.

Crimes against Children Digest 6-25-14

Juveniles Recovered in Operation Targeting Commercial Child Sex Trafficking 

Air Force Non-Commissioned Officer Sentenced to 120 Years in Prison for Sexually Exploiting Toddlers and Children to Produce Child Pornography

Rockville Man Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison for Distribution of Child Pornography

Shiprock Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Sexual Abuse Charge  

Richmond Man Previously Convicted of Aggravated Sex Crimes Against a Juvenile Sentenced for Distribution of Child Pornography 

Eagle Butte Man Sentenced for Sexual Contact with a Person Incapable of Consenting  

Savannah Man Sentenced for Distributing Child Pornography 

Auburn Man Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison for Distributing Images of Child Rape

Man Charged with Attempted Enticement and Sexual Exploitation of a Minor   

McCandles Man Convicted of Receiving Child Pornography  

School Shooting "Response " Options, Part II

Responding to School Active Shooter Incidents (ASI's)

In yesterday's blog, several issues with the ALICE approach were identified.  There are hidden financial costs due to Workman's Comp claims that, nation-wide, likely run into the millions.  Some schools that have replaced their emergency plans with ALICE.  The presentation approach used by ALICE is not true, criterion-based training, meaning that no effort is made to determine how well attendees have learned the material.  ALICE proposes that school personnel, and in certain circumstances students, engage in Close-Quarter Combat (CQC), which the Marine Corps defines as "physical confrontation between two or more combatants."

In thousands of assessments across the country, Safe Havens International personnel have found that school staff, some of whom have received ALICE and other 'proactive response' training, are responding improperly when faced with gun situations that are not ASI's.

There are possible serious liability issues with the implementation of ALICE, especially in its current state.  In a recent article of a school board in California advocating this approach, a member of the administrative staff said, "It also means a bad call could put lives at risk, but Lilga said that should not affect staff decisions. She said they are covered by Good Samaritan laws, which prevents people from being liable for civil damages if they act in good faith to help in emergency situations." 

This statement may not likely survive court scrutiny.  If a school trains an employee and the employee then makes a bad decision, even in good faith, then liability may still be conferred upon the school, if not the employee.

Analysis

The question then becomes, if ALICE and other 'proactive response' options are of concern, what are the alternatives?

1.  Use the All Hazards Approach, in which a school conducts regular risk and threat assessments, mitigates and prepares for identified risks/threats, coordinates their activities with local first responders, uses the National Incident Management System and the Incident Command System to respond and recover from any incident.  Under this approach, preparedness for an ASI would be one protocol among many in a school's emergency plan.

2. Use The Window of Life, a process for approaching the first 30 seconds of an incident, the critical time in which a situation can be won or lost by the decisions made.  Safe Havens International has a short, free video on The Window of Life.  A free, downloadable poster can also be found on Safe Haven's website.  The process is easy to remember; Take care of yourself, take care of others, protect your space and contact public safety.

3. Use a concept called "Permission to Live".  A well-trained, empowered employee can see beyond a written emergency protocol, and will know when it is appropriate to act outside of a protocol.  For example, during an ASI the protocol may call for a lockdown, but the employee may see an opportunity to safely evacuate his/her students.  He or she should not necessarily be constrained by the protocol, but guided by them.  The key is empowering the employee and giving them the means to be able to think tactically during high-stress moments.

Under ALICE, staff are given presentations on what to do during an incident, and are essentially instructed to "engage".  Even after being told to do so only as a last resort, what the participant remembers is "engage".  No attempt is made to assess the participant's retention of the material, so once the presentation is over, the schools are left to their own devices. 

What the school should do is to provide a protocol to guide actions, based upon a teacher's own comfort level, knowledge and background.  A teacher who is attempting to evacuate a class under fire when the teacher is ill-prepared to do so, or has not been trained to do so would most likely end up with tragic results, thus that particular teacher would follow the lockdown protocol.

We should be asking if schools should be ordering teachers to engage in CQC, even as a last resort.  There are those who have the personal inclination, background, and even training to engage in CQC.  But what of those school staff who do not have the personal inclination or background, even after they have received training?

It is imperative that schools take the time to consider these points before sending themselves down a path that may lead to tragedy.

School Shooting "Response" Options?

School Shooting Response

The Greenfield Daily Reporter reports that Appleton, WI schools are considering ALICE.  ALICE stands for Alert-Lockdown-Inform-Counter-Evacuate.  With each new shooting, schools are looking for a quick fix, based upon emotions from Sandy Hook and other shootings, and ALICE seems to give it.  But does it really provide what people hope?

Analysis

Michael Dorn, in a soon-to-be-released blog, outlines some hidden financial burdens of this program in the form of workmen's comp claims.  There is also a lack of a research base, and issues with implementation of poor training practices.

Around the country, Safe Havens International has found schools that have replaced their emergency plans with ALICE, which is not for what ALICE was intended.  While such implementation is not at the direction of any ALICE proponent, this shows the care that schools need to take when implementing a new program.  The courts require, and parents expect, due diligence by the school when considering changes to a school's emergency plans.

Some questions parents should ask of their schools, and schools should ask of themselves:
1. Does the school utilize All-Hazards planning?
All-Hazards planning helps a school prepare to face any threat, natural or man-made, that the school has identified as a viable risk.  A 'proactive response' strategy like ALICE is best used as a tool in this toolbox, not as a plan in and of itself.

2. Is the school properly training its staff in the implementation of its emergency plan?
The workmen's comp claim mentioned above are a sign of improper training.  Are the teachers actually being trained, or are they being presented to?  Training involves the attainment of an established criteria that demonstrates basic competence, followed by repetitive training that keeps the learned skill fresh and possibly even increase the level of competence.  Presenting is just passing along information, and passes along the burden of retaining the knowledge to the recipient.

Specifically, a program like ALICE is teaching teachers, and in some cases students, how to employ Close Quarter Combat (CQC) against a shooter.  While we can all agree that passively sitting in a room and getting shot is a bad thing, telling a lay person what to do without giving them the true means to implement it is just as bad.

A soldier in US Army Basic Training is provided 40 hours of basic hand-to-hand training.  This provides a trainee with the basic knowledge of unarmed combat, and is at least 20 times more instruction than an ALICE trainee receives.

3. SHOULD a school be providing such training to its staff and students?
There is an old saying, "Just because one can do a thing doesn't mean a person should do that thing."  We can tell our teachers and children to attack an attacker without giving them the proper tools, but should we?

People enter into law enforcement and the military knowing ahead of time what may be expected of them.  There is extensive screening and training that takes place to allow these people, who already have a propensity to deal with aggression, to face aggression.

Education is not one of those professions.  It is a caring, nurturing profession that does not lend itself to facing aggression. Do we want this profession to turn into one in which steely-eyed, square-jawed warriors will face any threat?  While this sounds great, in theory, how practical is it?

Great consideration should be given before we turn our schools into Spartan enclaves.  In subsequent posts, I will examine facets of ALICE, and provide sound, researched tactics that will help schools better respond in the unlikely event a shooter enters their school.

Concealed Carry Helps Man Stay Alive

Concealed Carry

Anthony Broyles and his two-year old daughter were enjoying a day at Lake Coeur d’Alene in Idaho.  He turned and saw a man 15 feet behind him with a knife.  The man asked him if he had any money.  Anthony, who holds a concealed carry permit, drew a pistol and cocked it.

The man withdrew without further incident.  Anthony believes the man, and another one waiting in a van, were attempting to kidnap his daughter.

Analysis

In the story, Anthony attributes his survival to situational awareness, a concept described in Staying Alive: How to Act Fast and Survive Deadly Encounters.  From the story, "Broyles had spent four-years in the marines and said his military experience gave him a sixth sense when it comes to threat assessment."  The military is an excellent place in which to develop, and practice, situational awareness, but it is by no means the only way.   The book describes in detail how to develop it, and how important it is in staying alive.

Another aspect of this story is concealed carry.  Staying Alive devotes a whole chapter on the idea of whether to carry a weapon or not.  It is certainly not for everyone.  Wanting to carry a weapon is only a small consideration, as there is a life-or-death responsibility that goes along with carrying a weapon.  That responsibility can only be fulfilled with proper training and practice, practice, practice!

As a former Marine, Broyles may have been able to defend himself unarmed, against a man with a knife.  But with the life of his two-year old daughter hanging in the balance, Broyles was glad he was carrying.

It is important to make that decision well before you have to, to give yourself time to train and practice.

Incorrect Data in the Aftermath of Troutman, Oregon

Incorrect Data

When dealing with school safety, it is important to use proper data to drive your efforts.  In the wake of the Troutman, Oregon school shooting, bad data has been put forth and swept along by social media, giving the impression that schools are not as safe as they used to be.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Blaze notes a journalist, Charles Johnson, who examined the faulty data from the group Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control group funded by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.  Of the 74 "school shootings mapped by the Everytown group, Johnson found issues with 33.  Everytown included every type of shooting imaginable, including, according to Mr. Johnson, some shootings that were only loosely associated with a school.

Analysis

This spring I released a study called Relative Risks of Death in U.S. K-12 Schools. In that report, the definition of an Active Shooter Incident was defined, using the definition put forth by the US Department Of Homeland Security. That definition is, "An Active Shooter is an individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area; in most cases, active shooters use firearms(s) and there is no pattern or method to their selection of victims.” This definition separates school shootings from shootings that take happen to take place at schools.

From the year 1998 through 2012, there were only 22 Active Shooter Incidents in K-12 schools.  These incidents resulted in the deaths of 50 students and 12 staff members.  Half of those incidents involved no fatalities, while of the other 11, three (Columbine, Red Lake and Sandy Hook) resulted in 46 (70.8%) of the 62 fatalities.

Active Shooter Incidents are terrifying, chiefly because their target selection is random.  That means anyone at the school is a potential target.  Targeted acts of violence, while dangerous, indicate a community violence issue in which the school is involved along with the community.  Active Shooter Incidents are targets of opportunity; schools just happen to be selected as a target because they have a high number of potential victims.  While one can predict violence at school in a violent community, we have thus far been unable to predict when a school will become a target of an Active Shooter.

School safety is a serious issue, and it is one about which we should have an on-going discussion.  We do no one any service at all by making it a fallacious discussion, using bad data.

Shooting Attack @ Reynolds HS

Shooting Attack in Oregon

Around 8:00am Pacific Time, it was reported that a person dressed in black, with tactical gear including a helmet, and armed with what appeared to be an AR-15, walked into Reynolds High School and opened fire.  Thus far one student is confirmed dead, as is the male shooter.

Early reports have the shooter found in a restroom by a police robot, indicating that he killed himself.

Reynolds is reportedly the second largest high school in Oregon, with over 2,800 students.

Analysis

As always with such events, early accounts have to be taken with a grain of salt.  This has been reported as an Active Shooter Incident, but that may change if the student who was killed was targeted by the shooter.  By DHS definition, targets in an Active Shooter Incident are randomly selected.

Please continue to watch as information is developed and vetted.

Pray for the family of the slain student, and for all the students affected by today's incident.

SPU Hero Releases Statement

SPU Hero

Jon Meis, the man who peppered spray the shooter at Seattle Pacific University, then held him in a choke hold until police arrived released a statement which read, in part,

"To my brothers and sisters at Seattle Pacific University, and my brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the nation and the world,

Words cannot come close to expressing the tragedy that occurred this past week on our campus. Like everyone else, I would hear of these horrible events on the news, but go home knowing that it could never happen to us. On Thursday, my life changed. I was thrown into a life and death situation, and through God’s grace I was able to stop the attacker and walk away unharmed. As I try to return to a normal life in the aftermath of this horrible event, I pray above all things for strength for the victims and their families. While my experience left me in physical shock, I know that many people are dealing with much greater grief than I have experienced, and in honesty I probably would not be able to handle myself right now if I had personally known the victims.

...

However, what I find most difficult about this situation is the devastating reality that a hero cannot come without tragedy. In the midst of this attention, we cannot ignore that a life was taken from us, ruthlessly and without justification or cause. Others were badly injured, and many more will carry this event with them the rest of their lives. Nonetheless, I would encourage that hate be met with love. When I came face to face with the attacker, God gave me the eyes to see that he was not a faceless monster, but a very sad and troubled young man. While I cannot at this time find it within me to forgive his crime, I truly desire that he will find the grace of God and the forgiveness of our community."

Analysis

Jon Meis has followed up his heroic actions with humility and grace.  In Staying Alive, we write about using words to heal, not hurt, after an incident.  Meis' words are a perfect example of how to use words to heal after tragedy.  We write that putting our feelings into words can help a person see the situation more objectively.  Jon has done an excellent job of doing this, and doing so in a positive way.

He is truly a remarkable young man.

Teachers Train in Active Schooter

Teachers Train

The Alabama Association of School Resource Officers conducted Active Shooter Training for educators recently.  The training was different in that the educators were training like the law enforcement officers.  The used guns with simmunitions, real-life guns that shoot paint bullets.

This type of training puts the educators in the shoes of the police officers, and gives them a glimpse of what an Active Shooter Incident is like from their perspective.

Analysis

The Indiana School Safety Specialist Academy conducted similar training a couple of years ago at the Muskatatuck Urban Training Center, specifically in an old hospital.

                                                  Indiana educators move in a 'diamond' formation

I had the privilege of acting as the "red team", which means I played a bad guy.  I had previously received certification from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Basic Active Shooter Doctrine, and had conducted previous exercises with the Academy.

Watching the educators learn how to move as a response team offered me additional insights into teaching educators tactics.  The teachers and administrators who were involved in the training were eager to learn, and the exposure to the tactics gave them a new-found respect for law enforcement.  In that regard, the training succeeded.

But as far as providing educators with the tactical skills needed to survive in those environments, the two day training fell far short.  I recall in one scenario, a teacher stuck her gun around a corner, turned her head away, and opened fire into a room.  While giving those around the teacher a good chuckle, it was not a sound tactical move.

All in all, the training was excellent, and the educators involved learned a lot.

The personality types of educators does not often lend itself to the learning of tactical skills.  This concept will be examined further in future blog posts.

Taking an Active Role in Active Shooter Training?

fox4kc.com

Teachers and staff in the Grandview School District are being trained to do more than locking down and waiting for police in the event of an Active Shooter Incident.  They are being trained to take a more active role, especially in the critical first few seconds.

Missouri state law requires active shooter training in all of it public and charter schools.

Analysis

The training above is a good thing, provided it meets some common-sense criteria.  Staying Alive involves taking a thoughtful, rational approach to planning and training.

1. Is the content of the training based on valid research?
Too often schools participate in training, especially Active Shooter training, using information that has not been researched, nor has been proven effective in the field.  uch programs have already been implemented in parts of the U.S., causing huge workman's compensation claims as staff members are getting injured during the training.

2. Are the instructors of the training certified as instructors?
Often, due to budget constraints, schools will hire a law enforcement officer to conduct Active Shooter training.  While the officer may have the best of intentions for the school, is the officer certified, at a minimum, as a law enforcement instructor? 

3. Are you being presented to, or are you being instructed?
A presentation is when information is given to a passive audience.  It will often involve numerous media slides and videos that show the concepts that the presenter wants to share.  A question/answer session at the end of the presentation does little to change the passivity of the audience.

Instruction takes place when a proper teacher/student relationship has been established.  Has the instructor broken down skills to be learned into sub-skills?  Does the instructor follow a logical progression of sub-skills to skills?  Does the instructor utilize the appropriate learning methods for his/her audience?  Is the student held accountable for retention of the knowledge learned?

4. Does the training create capacity, or will frequent "retraining" be required?
Schools will often hire consultants to conduct Active Shooter training.  Are these consultants working with the schools to make future use of consultants for that particular skill unnecessary, or are they working with the schools to create the capacity of the school to sustain the skills learned?  Sometimes consultants will "certify" school personnel, but will then state the personnel have to "re-certify" after a certain time period, necessitating the consultant return to provide the "re-certification".

Schools that do not take these factors into account may find themselves liable while implementing the concepts they learned, and finding out they don't work, or don't work well.  They need to do their due diligence, and take a thoughtful, considerate approach before implementing new training that will fundamentally alter the way they respond to a particular crisis.

Proper training will survive the scrutiny.

Crimes against Children Report 6-5-14

Texas Man Sentenced for Child Pornography

Kansas City Man Guilty of Producing Child Pornography

Las Vegas Man Sentenced for Transportation of a Minor with Intent to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity

Pigeon Forge Woman Sentenced for Child Pornography Offenses

Illinois Man Arrested and Charged with Transporting Child Pornography

Take 25 Initiative announced by the FBI, Community Partners

Hammer Attack on a Student in School

School Hammer Attack

A woman who was well known at Lafayette Elementary School in Oakland, California lured a 9-year old student off of the school playground and into a restroom.  There she used a hammer to assault the girl.  A security guard and a teacher entered the restroom and stopped the assault.  The woman was arrested and is being charged with assault with a deadly weapon.  The child was taken to a nearby children's hospital, where she was reportedly doing well.

Analysis

Hammer attacks are actually very common, unfortunately.  They are easily obtained, easily concealed, and make fearsome weapons.  Yet too often, educators who are given scenarios involving hammers do not utilize the proper life-saving steps in the first thirty seconds.

Schools, more and more, are focusing primarily on Active Shooter protocols, even though there were only 22 Active Shooter Incidents in K-12 schools from 1998 to 2012.  Over 5,000 scenario-based assessments all across the country shows educators, some of whom were trained in Active Shooter training like A.L.I.C.E or Run, Hide, Fight, are not utilizing the proper life-saving steps for weapons incidents not involving an Active Shooter.

Knives can be deadly.  Hammers can be deadly.  Educators need to be trained to view all weapons as the same in regards to response protocols.  Research by Dr. Gary Klein shows the best way to train is to use realistic, scenario-based training.

In the book Staying Alive: How to Act Fast and Survive Deadly Encounters a couple, Erin and Abe Singh, were brutally attacked in their home by an assailant armed with a hatchet and a hammer.  Safe Havens International has an excellent video detailing their story.

Staying Alive: Abe & Erin's Story