6.3 Active Shooter Situations
Key Takeaways
- Recognize an active shooter as someone actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill in a populated area—usually with a firearm
- Unarmed security roles typically center on Run-Hide-Fight guidance for civilians, rapid LE notification, and lockdown assistance per post orders
- Do not freestyle heroics that contradict policy, training, and the observe-and-report reality of most Guard Card posts
- Coordination means clear radio/911 information, staging for responders, and accountable accountability of people moved to safety
- After action: medical aid if trained/safe, scene integrity for investigators, and factual documentation
AUF Topic 11 addresses active shooter situations—among the highest-consequence scenarios a security guard may face. California BSIS training expects you to recognize the event quickly, understand your role, support civilian survival guidance, notify law enforcement, and follow post orders. It does not expect unarmed guards to improvise SWAT tactics.
Recognizing an active shooter
An active shooter is generally a person who is actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined or populated area, typically with firearms. Related terms you may hear:
- Active aggressor — similar concept that may include other weapons
- Workplace violence with a weapon — may escalate into an active shooter event
- Barricaded suspect — different problem set; may not be actively hunting victims
Recognition cues:
- Gunshots, repeated bangs inconsistent with construction
- People fleeing and screaming “gun” / “shooter”
- Visible firearm discharge or victims down with penetrating trauma
- Rapid movement of a subject hunting targets rather than grabbing cash and leaving (robbery pattern differs, but both can be lethal)
Do not wait for perfect confirmation if credible indicators exist. Delay kills. Simultaneously, avoid starting a full campus panic over a single unexplained noise without checking cameras/radio—follow your site’s verification protocol when time allows.
| Indicator | More consistent with | Guard first move |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple gunshots + fleeing crowd | Active shooter | Initiate emergency notifications; Run-Hide-Fight messaging; 911 |
| One subject with gun at register demanding money | Armed robbery | Observe/report; evacuate if safe; avoid confrontation per orders |
| Subject locked in office refusing to exit, no shots | Barricade / crisis | Contain perimeter if trained; call LE; do not rush alone |
| Fireworks smell after holiday event, no victims | Possible false alarm | Verify carefully; avoid unnecessary mass panic |
Civilian guidance: Run – Hide – Fight
DHS/FBI-style public guidance used widely in U.S. workplaces:
- Run — If there is a safe escape path, evacuate. Leave belongings. Help others only if it does not slow you unduly. Prevent others from entering the danger area. Keep hands visible for responding officers.
- Hide — If you cannot run, hide out of the shooter’s view. Lock/barricade doors, silence phones, turn off lights, spread out if possible, remain quiet.
- Fight — As a last resort when life is in imminent danger, disrupt or incapacitate the shooter with improvised weapons and group aggression if no other option exists.
For security personnel, this guidance is what you teach, model, and facilitate for occupants—unless your employer’s emergency action plan (EAP) uses equivalent language. Your presence should accelerate Run/Hide decisions, not freeze people waiting for you to “clear the building” alone.
Roles and responsibilities of security personnel
Exact duties come from post orders, the client EAP, and your training. Typical unarmed-guard responsibilities:
| Responsibility | What “good” looks like | What to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Early warning | Radio/duress, PA if authorized, clear “shots fired / location” traffic | Vague “something’s wrong” with no location |
| Notify law enforcement | Direct 911 or confirm dispatch called; give address, entry points, suspect description, weapon, direction of travel, victim locations | Assuming “someone else called” |
| Evacuate / direct Run | Point to exits away from gunfire; unlock egress if your role includes it | Sending people toward the threat |
| Hide / lockdown assistance | Help secure doors, account for rooms you can safely reach, silence alarms that draw attention if policy says so | Roaming hallways looking for the shooter alone |
| Information to responders | Staging location, keys/access cards, maps, camera views, last known shooter location | Getting in the entry stack uninvited |
| Medical support | If trained and the scene is reasonably safe, basic bleeding control / guide EMS | Moving deceased victims for “cleanup” |
Critical rule: Do not freestyle heroics contrary to policy. An unarmed guard charging a rifle-armed shooter because of movie tactics is usually a tragedy, not a medal. If your post is observe-and-report, your courage is measured by how many people you move to safety and how fast police get accurate information—not by close contact with the shooter.
Armed guards with a valid BSIS Firearms Permit and employer authorization operate under separate firearms policy and law. This Guard Card / AUF chapter still emphasizes judgment, notification, and coordination; firearm employment is not the core of the unarmed exam.
Coordination during the event
Active shooter response is a multi-agency problem. Security’s coordination jobs:
- Single source of truth on radio — Minimize chatter; use plain language; repeat critical updates.
- Access control for responders — Be ready to open gates, elevators, and stairwells when directed; do not argue with SWAT about “your turf.”
- Accountability — Track which areas were cleared for evacuation vs. still locked down, to the extent safe and assigned.
- Family / media perimeter — Direct arriving relatives to an official reunification point; do not speculate on camera.
- Stop the bleed / casualty collection — Only in areas declared reasonably safe or as directed by LE/EMS.
When officers arrive with rifles and shout commands, follow their orders. Expect them to treat everyone as a potential threat until identified. Hands visible. No sudden reaches for your phone or flashlight without announcing.
Scenario applications
Scenario 1 — Shots on Floor 3 of an office tower. You are in the lobby. You hear multiple shots and see people pouring into stairwells. Best actions: Call 911 with address and “shots fired, third floor,” announce/evacuate lobby away from elevators that open onto Floor 3 if that is the threat path, lock down lobby perimeter per EAP, prepare access badges/maps for PD, do not ride the elevator up to “check it out.”
Scenario 2 — Shooter passes your desk and continues down a hallway. You are unarmed; post orders forbid confronting armed suspects. Best actions: After the shooter passes and if you can move unseen, get yourself and nearby people into a lockable room, barricade, silence devices, call 911 with clothing description and direction, warn others by text/PA only if doing so does not reveal your hide location contrary to plan.
Scenario 3 — Hide phase; someone pounds on your locked door yelling for help. This is a known dilemma. Policy varies. Many plans caution that the shooter may lure victims. If you cannot visually verify a non-threat without compromising the room, and LE is minutes out, many trainings favor maintaining the secure hide. If your EAP gives a different rule, follow the EAP. Exam takeaway: do not casually open locked hides during an active shooter without a verification method consistent with training.
Scenario 4 — Fight as last resort. You and three employees are trapped in a break room; the shooter is entering and raising a firearm. Escape is impossible. Best actions: Commit as a group to distract and swarm, use chairs/extinguishers/tools, aim to control the weapon hand, continue until the threat stops, then secure the weapon without mishandling if possible and call 911. This is last resort—not a first choice when Run/Hide remain available.
Scenario 5 — After the shooting stops. Do not declare the incident “over” yourself. Wait for law enforcement clearance. Provide casualty locations, preserve evidence (do not move shell casings “to tidy up”), assist EMS corridors, and write a detailed timeline while memory is fresh. Expect investigative interviews; stick to facts you personally perceived.
Linking Topic 11 to earlier AUF topics
Active shooter response uses the same decision architecture as Topic 9: immediacy, options, role limits, and after-action reporting. It also intersects mental health (Topic 10)—some attackers have behavioral-health histories, but you cannot profile your way into prevention in the moment. In the moment, behavior (shooting) drives response. Prevention programs (reporting concerning workplace violence behaviors) belong to earlier elective/mandatory training, not freestyle diagnosing during gunfire.
Personal readiness habits
Know your exits, safe rooms, duress codes, and EAP before an incident. Mentally rehearse: “If shots come from the east corridor, I run west / hide in storage / radio X.” Low-frequency/high-risk events punish the unprepared. The best active-shooter “tactic” for most guards is pre-planned coordination, not improvisation under fire.
Which statement best describes a typical unarmed security guard’s role during an active shooter event?
You hear multiple gunshots on an upper floor. What is the best immediate notification content for 911/dispatch?
According to widely taught civilian guidance, when is ‘Fight’ appropriate in an active shooter situation?
Why is ‘freestyle heroics’ contrary to post orders a failure in active shooter response for most Guard Card holders?