How to handle a bank robbery call?

[pulicords]

I'm not sure what is worse, how this call was handled or that the chief of police endorses the officer's actions.

"Wednesday's robbery happened around 3 p.m. when the men walked into the bank at 107 Epley Road, ordered everyone to the floor and demanded cash, Shults said. One of the men carried a high-powered rifle with an extended magazine.

"It was a takeover," the chief said. "We got a silent alarm. When the call came out, he was about two blocks away."

The officer drove to the bank, parked just outside the front door and walked inside by himself with his Glock service pistol drawn, Shults said. The officer had a bullet-resistant vest, but Shults said he didn't know whether the officer wore it when he walked into the bank and came face-to-face with the robbers.

"Most of the time the bank robbery's over before we get there," the chief said. "When he saw they were still inside the bank, he backed out."

The officer tried to take cover behind his patrol car, but the robbers ran out the door after him and cornered him, Shults said.

"He drew them out of the bank," the chief said. "They came right up over or around the car. They told him, 'Don't be stupid.' He felt like it was definitely going to go bad if he didn't comply. You expect them to flee, not to charge you."

The officer hit the pavement, emptied his clip and handed the gun over, Shults said. The robbers took the gun and sped away in the SUV, which witnesses described as either a Chevrolet Traverse or a GMC Acadia.

Police training experts called the officer's response maybe not ideal but still better than a hostage situation or a shootout with wounded bystanders." http://www.officer.com/news/10846743...-giving-up-gun

[Tmg]

Sounds like he handled that perfectly. At least that how some of these Police Chiefs feel the call should be handled.

The cops gets bonus points too for not getting in a vehicle pursuit. After all this was just a bank robbery, no need to catch the suspects.

[SCSU74]

Wow if that wasn't true I would think it was a joke. At least go out shooting...

[mookster]

Unreal, this is as bad as that SRO from a couple months back. Lack of mental preparation and an "It won't happen to me" attitude can be as fatal as a John Wayne lone wolf McQuade complex.

[94303]

Does anyone know how long this officer has been on the job, it sounds like a training issue to me. We always cover the exits and call into the bank then have an employee come out and talk to us.

[CruiserClass]

Holy crap, just turn in your badge and go home before someone mistakes you for the police and you get hurt.

Go back and look at my history here, you'll see I pretty much never Monday morning QB anyone's decision, but really? Poor tactics led to a poor entry, and then he backed out and left civilians in danger, then turned over his service weapon? No. Just no.

[Gringe]

I wouldn't of handle the situation this way. With that said, I will not discuss how I or my agency's policy dictates how this is handled on open forum.

[ddurkof]

Well at least they obtained good pictures of the crooks. The tactics suck, but I wonder if the "it will never happen here" attitude may have come into play. The officer was very lucky.

http://www2.wjhl.com/news/2012/dec/2...ry-ar-2437129/

[ateamer]

That officer needs to go back into field training, if he's pretty new. If he is experienced, then it's a disciplinary matter. Either way, such incompetence is unacceptable.

[slamdunc]

Holy crap, just turn in your badge and go home before someone mistakes you for the police and you get hurt.

Great advice; this guy was obviously not prepared to do what needed to be done.

This isn't the thing you can train into (or out of) someone. They either have the heart and mindset for the job or they do not.

[NORCOCOP]

I guess it's time to ban these "extended" magazines. It seems as if they are everywhere, something must be done.

insert sarcasm


If he followed policy, the PD needs to be taken over and or replaced. If he failed to follow it, he needs to be let go. I'm sure he is glad they decided to let him live. But who wants this guy backing them up when the chips are down?

[XD4ME]

I am not going to comment on my agencies policies or tactics except to say it is nearly the opposite of what happened here. It is nice to see the Chief didn't throw him under the bus with the media but I hope there was a serious evaluation done behind the scenes.

[sanitizer]

This Officer is fortunate he wasn't killed.

[GC Tiger]

I like the way we do it. Much safer than this and it usually gets the suspect caught without civilians and police getting hurt.

[Steve in PA]

Not going to mention our specific methods for handling this type of call, but I will say we do NOT handle it the way that officer did!

That chief needs to stop trying to cover for his officer's ineptness or trying to make it sound like he did something good.

[mdrdep]

Someone needs to be sent a copy of "The Onion Field" as a belated Christmas gift.

[Chomp]

Sounds like he handled that perfectly. At least that how some of these Police Chiefs feel the call should be handled.

The cops gets bonus points too for not getting in a vehicle pursuit. After all this was just a bank robbery, no need to catch the suspects.

I wish I could "like" this twice. The only thing missing was a hug for each of the ****bags on their way out, although perhaps that did happen and the media just didn't cover it.

Priority 1: protect the chief/sheriff/honcho's political aspirations.
Priority 2: avoid liability at any cost.
Priority 3: public safety, I guess..

[borninblue]

WTF hand your firearm over? I would be handing my resignation in the next day.

[Henderson]

I like how some are saying they won't discuss tactics and how they respond, yet someone had a great idea to do just that and lay it out there. It'd be nice if a moderator edited that just a bit..

On the officer...Yea, just give your resignation letter while you're at it, since you like giving up and quitting anyway.

[borninblue]

I like how some are saying they won't discuss tactics and how they respond, yet someone had a great idea to do just that and lay it out there. It'd be nice if a moderator edited that just a bit..

On the officer...Yea, just give your resignation letter while you're at it, since you like giving up and quitting anyway.

I saw that as well, it was almost as stupid as the response in the story....

[TheTick]

Stop being so paranoid, I'll discuss tactics:

We fix bayonets, fast rope from the Blackhawk, and make forcible entry through the roof. If you rob a bank in our town, just stare at the ceiling and wait for us to come through. Ignore all other noises around you tempting you to avert your eyes, it's all part of the ruse to get you to stop staring at the ceiling.

[Tmg]

Priority 3: public safety, I guess..

That literally just made me laugh out loud.

The sad thing is though, its true......

[just joe]

Curious as to whether this place has a financial institution armed robbery response protocol or not.

[elchorizo]

The officer hit the pavement, emptied his clip
I initially took that to mean something completely different.

I now see this happening in that officer's near future.
WoodGun.jpg

[Rush817]

All I can say is WOW! That was a sheep wearing his sheepdog halloween costume! What a disgrace!