The Violence Project

The Violence Project
Author: Jillian Peterson
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 189
Release: 2021-09-07
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 1647002273

"Groundbreaking." ―Rachel Louise Snyder, bestselling author of No Visible Bruises An examination of the phenomenon of mass shootings in America and an urgent call to implement evidence-based strategies to stop these tragedies Winner of the 2022 Minnesota Book Award Using data from the writers’ groundbreaking research on mass shooters, including first-person accounts from the perpetrators themselves, The Violence Project charts new pathways to prevention and innovative ways to stop the social contagion of violence. Frustrated by reactionary policy conversations that never seemed to convert into meaningful action, special investigator and psychologist Jill Peterson and sociologist James Densley built The Violence Project, the first comprehensive database of mass shooters. Their goal was to establish the root causes of mass shootings and figure out how to stop them by examining hundreds of data points in the life histories of more than 170 mass shooters—from their childhood and adolescence to their mental health and motives. They’ve also interviewed the living perpetrators of mass shootings and people who knew them, shooting survivors, victims’ families, first responders, and leading experts to gain a comprehensive firsthand understanding of the real stories behind them, rather than the sensationalized media narratives that too often prevail. For the first time, instead of offering thoughts and prayers for the victims of these crimes, Peterson and Densley share their data-driven solutions for exactly what we must do, at the individual level, in our communities, and as a country, to put an end to these tragedies that have defined our modern era.

Active Shooter Events and Response

Active Shooter Events and Response
Author: John P. Blair
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 267
Release: 2013-06-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1466512296

The Columbine tragedy on April 20, 1999 began a new era in law enforcement as it became apparent that the police response to such mass shootings must be drastically altered. By the time the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, outdated police response strategies had been replaced with new, aggressive tactics used by the first officers on the scene. The frequency with which these events occur remind us time and again about the importance of training and preparing for these critical situations before they occur in our own backyards. Active Shooter Events and Response is one of the first attempts to not only discuss historic active shooter events, but also to actually dissect some of them—empowering law enforcement professionals by leveraging the essential knowledge and experience of those who have gone before us. The book also offers insight into the training methodologies and strategies used to prepare our nation’s first responders to address the active shooter threat. In addition, the authors discuss the clear and present threat of terrorist organizations using these mass shooter tactics on American soil—similar to the attacks in Beslan, Russia and Mumbai, India. Written by members of the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center at Texas State University, this book is the culmination of more than a decade’s worth of training and research into active shooter events and represents state-of-the-art, evidence-based best practices.

Stop the Killing

Stop the Killing
Author: Katherine Schweit
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 247
Release: 2021-08-15
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1538146932

Stop the Killing offers insight into what each of us can do to end the active shooter crisis plaguing America. Written by the former head of the FBI’s active shooter program, Katherine Schweit, shares an insider look at what we’ve learned, and failed to learn, about protecting our businesses, houses of worship, and schools. The book demystifies the language around active shooters, mass killings, threat assessment teams, and more. Never gathered before into one place, readers gain access to evidence-based research and the most up-to-date information as they travel step-by-step through shooting prevention efforts and shooting aftermaths. Beginning with an understanding of how to spot potential shooters, readers learn the many ways to prevent shootings and the role threat assessment teams play. Threat assessment experts provide insight on what kind of information they need, and how they use it to intercept a person on a pathway to violence. The book guides readers through the process of assessing building security weaknesses and shows how to find vulnerabilities in people, programs, and policies. Packed with practical advice for training every age, from preschoolers, to elementary school children, to adults, the book also includes the author’s own teaching outline on how to train people to run, hide, fight. The book gathers together examples to help build individualized emergency operations plans and shows how to tap vast government resources to cover costs to your office and employees, districts and students, and survivors and victim’s families. Hear sober advice gathered from those who have survived and responded to shootings at Columbine High School, Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook Elementary School, the Aurora theater, Los Angeles International Airport, and more. Their common theme is that it can happen anywhere and has. All the more reason to accept that as each of us better understand what happens and how to prevent it, we can be the ones to stop the killing. The book also features a new preface exploring the 2021 school shooting tragedy in Michigan, especially the groundbreaking use of a domestic terrorism charge filed against the shooter and involuntary manslaughter charges filed against his parents.

Active Shooters in the United States

Active Shooters in the United States
Author: Federal Bureau Federal Bureau of Investigation
Publisher:
Total Pages: 108
Release: 2018-06-23
Genre:
ISBN: 9781721777068

PART 1: A Study of the Pre-attack Behaviors of Active Shooters in the U.S. between 2000 & 2013 ("Phase II Study")PART 2: A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the U.S. Between 2000 & 2013 ("Phase I Study")PART 3: A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the U.S. in 2014 & 2015PART 4: A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the U.S. in 2016 & 2017The FBI defines an active shooter as one or more individuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area. Implicit in this definition is the shooter's use of one or more firearms. The active aspect of the definition implies that both law enforcement personnel and citizens have the potential to affect the outcome of the event. In 2017 there were 30 separate active shootings in the U.S., the largest number ever recorded by the FBI during a one-year period. With so many attacks occurring, it's easy to think nothing can stop a determined active shooter. "They just snapped" and "No one could have seen this coming" are common reactions that can fuel a collective sense of helplessness. But there is something that can be done. In the weeks and months before an attack, many active shooters engage in behaviors that may signal impending violence. Some of these behaviors are observable and may lead to a disruption prior to an attack.By articulating the concrete, observable pre-attack behaviors of many active shooters, the FBI hopes to make these warning signs more visible and easily identifiable. This information is intended to be used by law enforcement officials, mental health care practitioners, threat assessment professionals, parents, friends, teachers, employers and anyone who suspects that a person is moving towards violence.In 2014, the FBI published a report, referred to as the "Phase I" study, titled "A Study of Active Shooter Incidents in the United States Between 2000 and 2013" [Part 2 of the present volume] identifying 160 active shooter incidents in the U.S. The same methodology was used for the following years, identifying 20 incidents in 2014, 20 in 2015, 20 in 2016, and 30 in 2017 [Parts 3 and 4 of the present volume]. In the reports covering 2000 through 2017, we focused on the circumstances of the active shooting events (e.g., location, duration, and resolution) but did not attempt to identify the motive or pre-attack behaviors demonstrated by the offender. In 2018, the FBI published its "Phase II" report [Part 1 of the present volume], moving from an examination of the parameters of the shooting events to assessing the pre-attack behaviors of the shooters themselves. This second phase, then, turns from the vitally important inquiry of "what happened during and after the shooting" to the pressing questions of "how do the active shooters behave before the attack?" and, if it can be determined, "why did they attack?" The FBI's objective here was to examine specific behaviors that may precede an attack and which might be useful in identifying, assessing, and managing those who may be on a pathway to deadly violence.

Handbook of Research on Mass Shootings and Multiple Victim Violence

Handbook of Research on Mass Shootings and Multiple Victim Violence
Author: Crews, Gordon A.
Publisher: IGI Global
Total Pages: 531
Release: 2019-10-25
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1799801144

The phenomena of mass shootings appear to be on the rise. Within the past decade, shootings have occurred in schools, religious institutions, concerts, movie theaters, and other public venues, as well as at home in the form of domestic mass shootings. This phenomenon is influenced by factors such as access to guns, mental illness, the desire for fame, revenge from being bullied, and copycat killing to name a few. Mass shootings are a serious problem for society and must be explored further in order to provide preventive solutions. The Handbook of Research on Mass Shootings and Multiple Victim Violence is a pivotal reference source that provides vital research on contributing factors to gun violence, characteristics of shooters and victims, solutions for preventing incidents from occurring, and the impact these shootings have on the community. While highlighting topics such as school safety, cyberbullying, and mental illness, this publication is ideally designed for law enforcement, government officials, psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists, politicians, policymakers, law makers, academicians, researchers, and students seeking current research on the latest empirical findings of mass shootings in the United States.

Mass Shootings

Mass Shootings
Author: Jaclyn Schildkraut
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2016-02-22
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1440836531

This book provides readers and researchers with a critical examination of mass shootings as told by the media, offering research-based, factual answers to oft-asked questions and investigating common myths about these tragic events. When a mass shooting happens, the news media is flooded with headlines and breaking information about the shooters, victims, and acts themselves. What is notably absent in the news reporting are any concrete details that serve to inform news consumers how prevalent these mass shootings really are (or are not, when considering crime statistics as a whole), what legitimate causes for concern are, and how likely an individual is to be involved in such an incident. Instead, these events often are used as catalysts for conversations about larger issues such as gun control and mental health care reform. What critical points are we missing when the media focuses on only what "people want to hear"? This book explores the media attention to mass shootings and helps readers understand the problem of mass shootings and public gun violence from its inception to its existence in contemporary society. It discusses how the issue is defined, its history, and its prevalence in both the United States and other countries, and provides an exploration of the responses to these events and strategies for the prevention of future violence. The book focuses on the myths purported about these unfortunate events, their victims, and their perpetrators through typical U.S. media coverage as well as evidence-based facts to contradict such narratives. The book's authors pay primary attention to contemporary shootings in the United States but also discuss early events dating back to the 1700s and those occurring internationally. The accessible writing enables readers of varying grade levels, including laypersons, to gain a more in-depth—and accurate—understanding of the context of mass shootings in the United States. As a result, readers will be better able to contribute to meaningful discussions related to mass shooting events and the resulting responses and policies.

Trigger Points

Trigger Points
Author: Mark Follman
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 317
Release: 2022-04-05
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 006297355X

“An urgent read that illuminates real possibility for change.” —John Carreyrou, New York Times bestselling author of Bad Blood For the first time, a story about the specialized teams of forensic psychologists, FBI agents, and other experts who are successfully stopping mass shootings—a hopeful, myth-busting narrative built on new details of infamous attacks, never-before-told accounts from perpetrators and survivors, and real-time immersion in confidential threat cases, casting a whole new light on how to solve an ongoing national crisis. It’s time to go beyond all the thoughts and prayers, misguided blame on mental illness, and dug-in disputes over the Second Amendment. Through meticulous reporting and panoramic storytelling, award-winning journalist Mark Follman chronicles the decades-long search for identifiable profiles of mass shooters and brings readers inside a groundbreaking method for preventing devastating attacks. The emerging field of behavioral threat assessment, with its synergy of mental health and law enforcement expertise, focuses on circumstances and behaviors leading up to planned acts of violence—warning signs that offer a chance for constructive intervention before it’s too late. Beginning with the pioneering study in the late 1970s of “criminally insane” assassins and the stalking behaviors discovered after the murder of John Lennon and the shooting of Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s, Follman traces how the field of behavioral threat assessment first grew out of Secret Service investigations and FBI serial-killer hunting. Soon to be revolutionized after the tragedies at Columbine and Virginia Tech, and expanded further after Sandy Hook and Parkland, the method is used increasingly today to thwart attacks brewing within American communities. As Follman examines threat-assessment work throughout the country, he goes inside the FBI’s elite Behavioral Analysis Unit and immerses in an Oregon school district’s innovative violence-prevention program, the first such comprehensive system to prioritize helping kids and avoid relying on punitive measures. With its focus squarely on progress, the story delves into consequential tragedies and others averted, revealing the dangers of cultural misunderstanding and media sensationalism along the way. Ultimately, Follman shows how the nation could adopt the techniques of behavioral threat assessment more broadly, with powerful potential to save lives. Eight years in the making, Trigger Points illuminates a way forward at a time when the failure to prevent mass shootings has never been more costly—and the prospects for stopping them never more promising.

I'm Not Scared...I'm Prepared!

I'm Not Scared...I'm Prepared!
Author: Julia Cook
Publisher: National Center for Youth Issues
Total Pages: 33
Release: 2014-05-01
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1937870979

When faced with danger you must DO something. The teacher at the Ant Hill School wants her students to be prepared - for everything! One day, she teaches her students what to do if a "dangerous someone" is in their school. "I'll be your shepherd, and you're all my sheep, so you must do what I say. Pretend there's a wolf in our building, and we MUST stay out of his way!" "We need a great plan of action in case we start to get scared. The ALICE Plan will work the best, to help us be prepared." Unfortunately, in the world we now live in, we must ask the essential question: What are the options for survival if we find ourselves in a violent intruder event? I'm Not Scared...I'm Prepared! will enhance the ALICE concepts and make them applicable to children of all ages in a non-fearful way. By using this book, children can develop a better understanding of what needs to be done if they ever encounter a "dangerous someone."

School Shooters

School Shooters
Author: Peter Langman
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 299
Release: 2015-01-15
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1442233575

School shootings scare everyone, even those not immediately affected. They make national and international news. They make parents afraid to send their children off to school. But they also lead to generalizations about those who perpetrate them. Most assumptions about the perpetrators are wrong and many of the warning signs are missed until it’s too late. Here, Peter Langman takes a look at 48 national and international cases of school shootings in order to dispel the myths, explore the motives, and expose the realities of preventing school shootings from happening in the future, including identifying at risk individuals and helping them to seek help before it’s too late.