PARKLAND, FLA. (WSVN) - The Broward Sheriff’s Office released a letter detailing changes implemented since the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting on Feb. 14.
The letter was directed toward Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri who serves as chairman of the MSD Public Safety Commission.
Since the shooting that left 17 students and staff members dead, 1,378 BSO deputies completed eight hours of scenario-based active shooter and rescue task force training.
Additionally, all BSO school resource officers were given a full week of active shooter, tactics, and concealed carbine carry and qualification training.
The former BSO Active Shooter policy was replaced with a “revised” policy that reads in part, “deputies responding to active threat(s) incidents shall attempt to protect the life of innocent persons through immediate intervention to eliminate the threat.”
The new policy directs deputies responding to a threat to “1. Stop the active assailant(s); 2. Rescue the victims; 3. Provide medical assistance; 4. Arrest suspects and preserve the crime scene.”
In order to make sure deputies respond quickly to threats, BSO was granted real-time access to live camera feeds from public schools, according to the letter.
Sheriff Scott Israel closed the letter by promising that more reforms will come in the future.
“The reforms adopted to date are not the end of this process,” the letter stated. “Rather, they are a midway point as we continue working towards addressing all of the findings related to our agency and implementing all of the Commission’s recommendations.”
To read the full letter, click here.
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