An OIS (Officer Involved Shooting) in Las Vegas provides some lessons to be learned. Breach-Bang-Clear
OIS & Tourniquet Use by LVMPD
What can we learn?
David Reeder
There is a lot of good work being done by the coppers in this video, though there’s at least one thing that made us wince when we watched. This recording will almost assuredly be adopted into all sorts of classes across the country. That said, there’s always sumthin’ to learn, assuming you’re willing to do so.
Some background – LVMP officers located a vehicle matching the description of the vic used in a shooting the previous day. They approached the vic and the pax fled. A short pursuit followed, but officers broke off the chase for public safety concerns [note: we’re trying to find the pursuit footage]. The vehicle crashed and at least one suspect cracked off a round. Responding officers objected ballistically and at least one suspect was hit.
One of the officers who shot the suspect then deployed a tourniquet on the man, who was conscious and speaking. No officers were injured.
SO – what do we keep here, and what do we throw away?
Watch the video, then let’s collectively get our learn on.
To you LV officers I say, very well done. Glad you came out of this upright, and I appreciate you representing an honorable profession by your actions.
To our readers…lemme take a minute here on behalf of all of us here at Breach-Bang-Clear to say we appreciate you. There are some well and truly savvy folks reading these articles (and a few knuckle draggers too, which is entertaining), savvy folks who are willing to engage in civil discourse. That makes for some damn good conversations.
Better yet, when some window-licking fuckwit chimes in with something stoopid, we’re rarely forced to respond. You guys and gals do. Often one of you says something that makes us (figuratively) look at each other and say, “Damn, that’s a helluva good point.”
Even if we don’t agree.
Different viewpoints allow learning to occur — because remember:
Jane is an ignorant slut.
Be safe, stay dangerous. Carry a pocket IFAK. Or wear an ankle medical kit. Keep a trauma kit in your vehicle. It’s bloody important. That’s all for now, go forth and conquer.
First thing I noticed was the first officer retaining his empty magazine when reloading. You fight how you train, and clearly he wasn’t for letting those drop to the floor.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDgn53uI0qk
This YouTube video by LVMPD breaks it down and has the whole video.
From personal experience live tissue training should be made available to all officers yeah dolls are good but BCTT or DMOC will teach how to stabilize battle trauma like a champ.
Good job, couple inproves:
Pre-stage TQ
Roll the guy over and apply manual pressure with knee to groin/leg to lessen bleeding while getting the TQ on.
Good job putting a stop to this threat. Strong work by both officers.
Sustain: Controlled aggression in pursuit of an armed suspect running towards a house. Good reaction time when faced with a deadly force threat. Marksmanship was effective enough although not “flat range perfect,” as these things never are. Weapon was removed and bag guy washandcuffed quickly. TQ was readily available and applied quickly.
Improve: Muzze awareness. Fight tunnel vision and stay aware of where your partner and other officers are. Be aware of tripping hazards. Consider gloving up before rendering aid. Be aware that applying a TQ with slick blood everywhere is not easily accomplished.
Some personal thoughts:
1. Great job getting out and chasing this guy. He was running to a house, and these officers might have prevented a barricade/hostage situation by chasing and stopping the threat. Sometimes it’s better to resist the siren song of a foot chase; this was not one of those times.
2. Holy shit was that almost a blue on blue or what? You can believe there was some discussion about muzzle discipline after this video was reviewed.
3. I know the guy was leaking like a broken jug of milk, but personally, he might have had to wait on me taking some gloves on before I went hand on with the TQ. Not saying the coppers were wrong for doing it bare skinned, but I might have made a different call in this day and age.
4. Did anyone else catch that the bad guy cranked off a round in the air as he ran across the front yard? That seemed odd to me, wonder what the thought process was with that.
5. Practice putting on TQs under real world conditions: practice cutting away sleeves and pant legs with whatever knife you regularly carry. Practice taking out and applying your TQ as it’s carried, not pre-staged to make it easy. Once you’re fairly proficient getting them on dry, have some fun with it: cooking oil makes a nice slick messy blood-like medium. Once you’re doing okay with the “blood,” start turning down the lights. Practice low light application until you’re getting them on just with a little ambient light or the light of your partner’s flashlight.
Sorry about the typos.
To clarify, when I said to practice applying your TQ as it’s carried, not pre-staged to make it easier, I meant don’t set it up and lay it out all nice and neat on the ground during training. Practice deploying it from your carrier/belt/pocket as is; you will quickly learn the value of having it partially routed through the friction buckle.
I agree that muzzle discipline is key. Need to work on fighting the effects of adrenaline. As stated, GLOVES!! From the driver’s body cam, you see backup putting on gloves for less critical gsw. The passenger body cam shows a much more excited officer but by no means less effective with or without gloves. The only problem I see is maybe a slight lack of TQ training. Officer was flustered and then a second set of non gloved hands assists. Was the TQ staged properly while prior to use? None of us know that were not there. The most amazing thing to note is most of the cops went from offensive mode to life saving mode at the flip of a switch. These guys get it that it’s not always about launching bullets and watching someone die as evidenced by their compassion. Don’t get me wrong though…there quite a number of people that need to be shot and left to bleed out. This vid is different than that.
I’d recommend people start pre-staging their TQ/CATS, instead of just unwrapping the plastic wrap and then tossing it into what ever carrier/holster, something I commonly see with LE/MIL. Open it up stretch it out, double route (usual technique for leg leaks) it through the friction-buckle, then open it as wide as it can go and still Velcro to itself. Now you have a large ring to thread the leg (or arm) through; over a boot, shoe, snow-boot, drop rig/holster, obese subject leg—–With that setup, just run it up the leg (or arm), position the windlass over or near the adductor-longus/sartorius muscle (leg, inner upper thigh), pull the red/white end, wrench it down, and start spinning the handle. It’s much faster then doing the under-pass and thread method. It takes minimal time and sets you up to win.
FWIW, I believe TCCC now condones only single routing the buckles for all wounds that are appropriate for a tourniquet. In fact, the current CAT version (gen7) from NAR only has a single route option. Regardless of TCCC recommendations, the first one I place is always single routed as that’s how I have them prestaged (so that any TQ can be applied more easily in a one hand situation). Any additionals (if the bleeding is slowed but not stopped), get double routed if possible. Never had one loosen personally or heard of one loosening. There was a study back in 2013 (I think) in JSOM that looked at the differences and I believe the only differences were time to application (faster with single route) and blood loss (less with single route).
But I agree with everything else.
Nicely done.
yep, not sure if that right seater was/is an FTO, but great mentorship driving. driver flagging his right seater made me cringe too. he did a good job of covering down on the right seater’s reload without a call for it.
that was fast and good work with the CAT. I think that’s the first vid in years, if ever that I’ve seen a cop render aid of any kind, much less effective aid like this one, post shoot. I can’t think of another vid that the cops did anything but cuff and watch a bleed out.
and I like that these are being hung with the intent to AAR them.
Agreed, good work here. The only real changes I would suggest:
First and foremost, do NOT LASER YOUR FELLOW OFFICER. That was a brief “crap!!! !” moment by the 2nd officer that could have easily caused a fatal friendly fire incident.
Lastly, carry gloves with you and take a moment to glove up before going hands on first aid with a suspect you just drilled. Only a fellow “blue” casualty would get the non-gloved treatment from me. At it is, blood borne disease scares me to death.
Glad the officers prevailed in this….but I will end with saying that I really hate bad guy luck. One headline I saw was that the suspect was shot 19 times, and yet is expected to live. I have friends who have been slain in the line of duty by being hit just freakin once…..and this dirthead gets to have medical care and 3 hots and a cot for the foreseeable future. Frustrating.
Nice TQ application. This video illustrates that when stuff gets exciting, your find manipulation skills to away. Myself, as an old medic, well, “no glove, no love”. I keep a pair of gloves in my pocket to this day!
Sheesh! “Fine”, not “find”!
Kudos to the officers for going barehanded. I might have frisked and cuffed the guy, but not sure if I would have put the CAT on without gloves. OTOH, given that the blood was leaking out of his leg like someone left a hose running, if they’d paused to put gloves on, he might be dead.
One more reason to remember, the only gear you’ll have when you need it is what’s on you. No running to the car to your bag, nothing. Why there’s a medkit in my pocket with TQ, in the same pocket, every shift.
Nice save and well done. Good video, I’m going to use it in our next bleeding control class.
Thought the CAT around the cop’s ankle was pretty ninja.