Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) Near Miss is a voluntary, non-disciplinary officer safety initiative that allows law enforcement personnel to read about and anonymously share stories of close calls or “near misses,” which provide lessons learned that can protect fellow officers in similar situations.
EVENT SUMMARY
I was out on patrol with my K-9 partner when I was dispatched to a burglary in progress. The dispatcher noted that the reporting party was the next-door neighbor who was watching the house (the house was on record that the owners were out of town and the neighbor was watching it for them).
Upon arrival, I entered the house with my K-9 through the front door that was ajar. From the living room, I called out, “Police! Come out or I’ll send the dog.” I repeated this at least once and my K-9 was alerting to the recliner in the corner of the living room. I released my dog and drew my side arm. Just then, a teenager stood up from behind the recliner holding a cordless phone in his left hand. This turned out to be the neighbor who did not inform the dispatcher that he was actually in the house at the time.
My full attention was on the person hiding behind the recliner. Meanwhile, two masked men appeared in the hallway at my 4 o’clock with a gun drawn on me. They ran out the back door where they were quickly apprehended.
The enhanced 9-1-1 system showed the call came from the next door neighbor’s home phone, so the dispatcher did not ask where the neighbor was at the moment. The neighbor could have been bitten or shot due to missing information, and this error focused my attention away from the real danger.
Contributing Risk Factors
- Human error
- Insufficient call information
- Lack of situational awareness
- Multiple subjects
- No backup officer at the scene
- Subjects’ possession of a weapon
Lessons Learned
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Communication is imperative. Request additional information from the dispatcher and avoid making assumptions. Information relayed to officers may not always be accurate.
- Dispatchers should ask the reporting party to verify their location at that moment, as dispatch assumed since the call came from the neighbor’s home phone, the neighbor was at home. Call checklists and protocols can assist call takers in asking the right questions for each type of call, so communications centers should ensure they have these resources in place.
- Never assume that if a K-9 alerts, there is only one subject in the area of concern. Recognize and combat tunnel vision so you can assess the entire scene and situation.
- In the absence of exigent circumstances, slow down your tactics. Request and wait for backup before conducting a building search by yourself. Have a plan, conduct a methodical search and be mentally prepared to find someone (or multiple people) inside.
HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR NEAR MISS
Support this critical officer safety initiative by reading and sharing the near-miss stories and lessons learned that your fellow officers have shared, and consider sharing your own near-miss experiences at LEOnearmiss.org.