Excerpted from: ERRI EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORT-EmergencyNet NEWS
Service-Monday, May 11, 1998-Vol. 2 - 131
ESR CLOSE UP
PUBLIC SAFETY TARGET ACQUISITION: THE 911 SOLUTION
By James P. Denney, ERRI Senior Analyst
In 1997, a criminal conspiracy to rob an armored car included the detonation of improvised
explosive devices at several locations, including a chemical processing plant, as a
diversionary tactic. The perpetrators intended to draw public safety agencies away from
the area where the robbery was to occur. On May 8, 1998, a criminal conspiracy to commit
bank robbery included a plan to detonate 14 improvised explosive devices at several
locations as a diversionary tactic. The perpetrators again intended to draw public safety
agencies away from the robbery sites.
These incidents, whether we want to admit it or not, are attacks on us. It is significant
that, in both of these near misses, the perpetrators were prepared to go to this extreme.
These events only serve to increase our vulnerability to tactical violence. By simply
dialing 911 they were guaranteed target acquisition within 3 to 5 minutes and could set
their timers accordingly. In both of these instances, the end justified the means for
these individuals. This is a nihilistic attitude generally applied to terrorism. It goes
back to the blurring of the lines between common and convictional criminals.
It also points out that criminal oriented individuals have a rudimentary understanding of
public safety operations. In these cases, we were specifically targeted. Not as
individuals, but as entities requiring mitigation prior to, or concurrent with, the
commission of a criminal act. This puts a whole new spin on the tactical violence issue.
The use of multiple IED's could have resulted in the immediate attrition of trained
personnel through injury or death, thereby reducing overall community protection for a
protracted period. This, in turn, could have resulted in the activation of the mutual aid
plan and the inclusion of state and/or federal resources to fill the gap temporarily.
Public safety is being identified as problematic during the vulnerability analysis and
hazard assessment phase of criminal plan development. It appears that the process is
evolving strategies and tactics that include the co-opting of public safety resources
through diversionary tactics. If these events had come to fruition, police, fire, EMS and
hospitals in the area would have potentially been placed in disaster conditions. By this
reasoning, these crimes are attacks on the community infrastructure.
Tactical ultra violence, in the context of these crimes, is therefore an act of terrorism
for monetary rather than political gain.
The message is that we are vulnerable and subject to the vagaries of the criminal element.
It is one thing to respond to a bombing incident expecting to provide consequence
management, however, as was experienced by Atlanta FD, it is another matter when the
bombing was designed with you in mind as a target.
While labeling these conspirators as white supremacist may be informative to the public,
it has no bearing on the act itself and places the incident in another context for federal
consideration. The focus on militant white supremacist, neo-nazi or militia organizations
leads to process auditing rather than issue focus and tends to steer us away from the
actual problem of public safety targeting.
In any given emergency, the ratio of consequence to crisis resources is always high
because of the labor intense functions provided by consequence resources. From a risk
management perspective, the community impact of losing an engine, truck, rescue company or
ambulance is significant. While law enforcement may be the primary agency of public safety
targeting, it is
the collateral damage to consequence agencies such as fire and EMS that will increase
overall community vulnerability.
(c) Copyright, EmergencyNet NEWS Service, 1998. All Rights Reserved. Redistribution without permission is prohibited by both criminal and civil law.
The ERRI EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORT is a subscription publication of the EmergencyNet NEWS Service, which is a part of the Chicago-based Emergency Response and Research Institute. This publication specializes in Law Enforcement/Fire/EMS/Disaster and Medical Issues.
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