Valley law enforcement offering active shooter training to the public
Mahoning Valley - Two local law enforcement officers have made it their mission to go around the community and beyond to teach active shooter training.
Officers Chris Moffitt and Bob Thompson have dedicated their careers to law enforcement, and they continue to offer active shooter training through their program "Training Specifics."
Thompson said they got inspired over a decade ago having their own kids in school.
"It's just a passion to keep them safe and all the other kids safe," he said, "as well as everybody else in the community."
Officer Thompson is the Chief of Police in Hubbard, and he's worked in the FBI Drug Task Force and instructs at YSU and Kent State Police Academies. He's also a Department Defensive Tactics Instructor and Field Training Officer.
Both officers are certified ALERRT instructors in Ohio, which is Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training.
The two travel around teaching active shooter training to officers, schools, companies, and anywhere in a building atmosphere or outdoor venue.
The offers said it's valuable training you can use anywhere you go.
"They can expect to have a mix of emotions," he said, "They can expect to learn some things and think about some things that they may have not thought about in the past."
They incorporate ALICE training, a kind of training that has gotten some criticism, but Thompson said they offer a lot of options in a shooting situation when you can't get away.
"We're going to give them a path in their mind to take if something bad happens," he said.
They also teach officers to be reactive, as officers in Uvalde were criticized for not stopping the shooting quickly enough.
"When we're teaching the officers, it's to go in and find out what's going on and stop it immediately, not to hesitate, not to wait outside," he said.
Tomorrow's session is at the Hollywood Gaming Austintown Racino and is for the Western Reserve Chapter, which serves HR professionals locally.
To sign up for tomorrow's event, click here.
For future events and to contact Training Specifics or read more about the officers, click here.
