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Law enforcement, school personnel learn rapid deployment techniques

By Lynn Hotaling
Chief Deputy Jim Ashe, right, and Cpl. Clyde Rice Herald photos by Lynn Hotaling

With guns ready, Chief Deputy Jim Ashe, right, and Cpl. Clyde Rice of the Jackson County Sheriff's Department rush down a Smoky Mountain High School corridor during last Friday's rapid deployment training. Both law enforcement and school system personnel received training from a Charlotte-based security firm on techniques to be used in the event of a violent incident in a school.

After a week of intensive training, local law enforcement personnel are in a better position to respond to violent situations in schools.

Through a joint effort of the Jackson County Sheriff's Department and Jackson County Public Schools, deputies and school administrators received training in rapid deployment techniques for dealing with gunmen in schools.

The two local agencies contracted with Nationwide Protection Services Inc. of Charlotte for specialized training that can be employed in times of crisis. Company President John Nettles and NPS staff members spent five days in Jackson County - four with Sheriff's Department personnel and one with school leaders.

Nettles' company developed the procedures in the aftermath of tragic deaths at Columbine High in Littleton, Colo. In April 1999, two seniors took their own lives after killing a dozen students and a teacher at the suburban Denver school.

If a situation arose where an "active shooter" was loose in one of the county's schools, Nettles said, regular law enforcement personnel would have to respond initially because it takes up to 45 minutes to deploy a tactical team.

The key component of the NPS training is showing educators what the deputies learn, and vice versa, Nettles said, with the result being that "everybody is a big team. They all know what to expect from everybody else."
Security consultant John Nettles, center

Security consultant John Nettles, center, gives directions to Smoky Mountain High Principal Kenny Nicholson, left, school resource officer Keith Webb, second from right, and other security personnel during a Friday drill at SMHS. Consultants and law enforcement officers simulated an attack on the school and demonstrated response techniques.

NPS is the first consulting firm in the U.S. to propose teaching crisis management techniques to law enforcement and school personnel simultaneously, Nettles said, and Jackson is the first school system to receive the joint training.

"We've accomplished what we set out to do," Nettles said. "Everyone understands the technique."

Local principals, assistant principals and law enforcement participated in a simulated crisis at Smoky Mountain High July 28. With school personnel playing the roles of teachers and students, deputies responded to a 911 call, secured the building and took down a "shooter" (played by one of the NPS team members).

Once the "gunman" was contained, law officers escorted teachers and students to a secure area, and an extradition team removed the wounded to a predetermined triage area.
When the training exercise was over, all involved reassembled in the school library where Nettles led a wrap-up session.

Superintendent Frank Burrell credited Chief Deputy Jim Ashe with coordinating the training for local school and law enforcement personnel.

Ashe had attended law enforcement training sessions conducted by Nettles and was impressed with NPS methods and experience, he said. Jackson County's Sheriff's Emergency Tactical Team went to one class and two snipers from the team attended an additional session.

When Ashe learned of the coordinated rapid deployment training NPS had developed for law enforcement personnel and educators, he approached Superintendent Burrell and Southwestern Community College for funding assistance in bringing NPS to Jackson County.

"The training we had last week puts everyone on the same page of the same book," Ashe said.

The main objective of the NPS strategy is to stop deadly behavior - to separate an active shooter and save lives, Ashe said, and that's the principle behind last week's training as well - to help schools implement safety plans and be better prepared in case a gunman is ever loose in a school here.

Nettles, an ex-Green Beret, has extensive training in special operations, Ashe said. "He's been involved in many international incidents and has learned ways to save lives," he said.

Nettles' assistant Tom Bullins has the same Special Forces background. In effect, Ashe said, the two were part of a U.S. tactical team that handled critical incidents throughout the world.

"We're very pleased with the technique. Basically, it's an emergency plan to help administrators and teachers understand what they might have to face," Ashe said. "It's a reality check."

It's necessary to have training like this and have some type of plan in effect, Ashe said.

Fairview Principal Sue Nations said the day's training was "very intense." She liked the fact that school personnel were training with law enforcement to look at worst-case scenarios, she said. The training achieved its purpose in that it made school administrators more alert, she said.

SMHS Prinicpal Kenny Nicholson, who played himself during the drill and declared the school in a "lockdown," said that "things have reached the point" where training on handling incidences of school violence is necessary.

"'Be prepared' is the thing I got from Friday's process. Our hope is that it will never happen. But, if it does, we will be prepared. I think parents will want to know we're prepared," Nicholson said.

"It's not something you want to know you're prepared for, but, if you are, it's beneficial to both students and teachers," Nicholson said.

The high school principal expressed his appreciation to the Sheriff's Department and said more training is planned for teachers.

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