View Full Version : CA - 3 gunmen open fire in church. Church violence and preparedness.
Church security & preparedness while attending services has been discussed in several different threads without one being dedicated to it. After reading about this incident over the weekend in CA I thought it might be worth starting a thread to discuss the possibilities of a shooter and what type of plan is in place at your house of worship.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/14/california.church.shooting/index.html?hpt=Sbin
(CNN) -- A Sunday church service in Richmond, California, erupted into chaos when three gunmen opened fire on congregants, injuring two teens, according to police.
Police headed to the New Gethsemane Church of God in Christ about 12:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. ET), after three hooded men shot at churchgoers, Richmond police spokeswoman Bisa French told CNN.
"We're not sure if those two victims were targeted, but someone definitely in that general area where the victims were, was targeted," French said.
Police are unsure why the church, filled with more than 100 people, was attacked.
The male victims, ages 14 and 19, are expected to make full recoveries, French said.
The assailants were described as being in their late teens or early 20s, French said.
On the East Bay, Richmond is north of Berkeley, California.
ForTehNguyen
02-15-10, 14:11
time to get an AR with a bible ACOG on it!
time to get an AR with a bible ACOG on it!
Well played sir :D
IL73 I'll certainly sub. to that thread. I usher in a small Cat. church here in ETX and even though I can ID 1, sometimes 2 OD LEOs I know, they don't carry, WTF?
So it's me w/ my 19 or 26 + my BUG. Do have one whack job that I keep an eye on as he sometimes shouts an occasional comment re. abortion, 'nother WTF here.
I remember the previous threads, they had some salient points, are you going to merge or resurrect them?
I remember the previous threads, they had some salient points, are you going to merge or resurrect them?
I have no way to do this, I'm just a forum member.
Grant and a few others have discussed the fact that they've formed a "security detail" and even gone so far as to involve the head of services of their respective churches. Active shooter scenarios are becoming more common as time goes by and unfortunately the bad guys know that most church attendees are defenseless. Consequently this makes for a target rich environment for the wolves as a lot of sheep never consider the possibility that it could happen at their church.
EDIT: What separates this one from many incidents I've seen is that it doesn't hold true to the "lone gunman" that is typical of these situations.
At my church, we have 1 or 2 guys who carry. The pastor has also picked a few people who know how to use a fire arm and has given us a code word. If he says the word we are supposed to retrieve a handgun that is hidden, which only we know the location of.
Understood IL73, knew you weren't a mod, etc.
As long as we have this one, lame & infirm whack job, think I'll be GTG w/ my HGs.
Really DO NOT want things to deteriorate to the point where my SBR in it's guitar case gets drug in from my POV. That would be time to find a new church I reckon.
littleshoe
02-15-10, 15:00
I have no way to do this, I'm just a forum member.
Grant and a few others have discussed the fact that they've formed a "security detail" and even gone so far as to involve the head of services of their respective churches. Active shooter scenarios are becoming more common as time goes by and unfortunately the bad guys know that most church attendees are defenseless. Consequently this makes for a target rich environment for the wolves as a lot of sheep never consider the possibility that it could happen at their church.
EDIT: What separates this one from many incidents I've seen is that it doesn't hold true to the "lone gunman" that is typical of these situations.
They have such a security detail at my church not including some of the uniformed LEOs which sometimes are in services. As soon as I get back my CCW Permit I am going to start carrying there. Since I sit in the front I would be close if something ever went down.
At my church, we have 1 or 2 guys who carry. The pastor has also picked a few people who know how to use a fire arm and has given us a code word. If he says the word we are supposed to retrieve a handgun that is hidden, which only we know the location of.
It sounds like your church is on it's way to a good start. There are a few things you may want to take into consideration. During a moment of crisis and confusion such as this it would be very difficult to obtain a hidden gun with people screaming, crying, hitting the deck and running to various exits in the building. Also, having 1 hidden gun that several people are supposed to use I can imagine that no one person will be the most proficient that they need to be with that particular firearm due to not practicing sufficiently enough with it. I think you'd be much better served by having your gun that you practice with on your body in order to have the best tactical advantage that you possibly can have.
They have such a security detail at my church not including some of the uniformed LEOs which sometimes are in services. As soon as I get back my CCW Permit I am going to start carrying there. Since I sit in the front I would be close if something ever went down.
Another thought I had would be to convene a church security detail meeting. There are a myriad of reasons why and one of the first things that comes to mind is knowing who's armed amongst your congregation and on the good guy's side.
Shooting an innocent person, or being shot, trying to protect their fellow church members because you thought of them as a threat instead of a teammate would be a life changing event for everyone involved.
Think about what would be happening if there were shots fired in a church. People would be all over the place. Hitting only the bad guy, let alone finding them once everyone went scattering for the doors would be near impossible. It's an unfortunate situation, and why I worship at home.
There was a wacko who walked in and punched a guy (one too many chiefs in the tee-pee scenario) about 5 years ago. That caused a commotion like you wouldn't believe. People scattering every which way. Not really conducive to aimed, controlled fire on target. At least not without running the risk of having someone step in front of you while they're trying to get out.
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