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Gunfight caught on dashcam: 10-minute training

Trooper Matt Zistel of the Oregon State Police was fired on by an ex-U.S. Army Reservist named John Van Allen — Allen was killed by a single gunshot wound, but Zistel is preparing to return to patrol

As we reported this morning, Oregon State Police released video in which a deadly gunfight occurred during a daytime traffic stop in late August.

John Van Allen, whose three children were in the car next to him, opened fire on Trooper Matt Zistel. Zistel moved behind his squad car and returned fire. Allen was killed by a single gunshot to his chest. Zistel was treated and released from a nearby hospital.

It’s a little unfortunate that the headline of our news coverage (and I, just now) told you what was going to happen in the video — that’s the thing with news headlines, we’ve got to tell you what you’re going to get — because if we’d posted it “raw” there would be some added training value.

We can’t un-ring a bell, put the toothpaste back in the tube, or un-see that video from earlier today. But we can do a 10-minutes training session (and we all know that a great deal can be accomplished during a 10-minute daily training session) that address some of those training points even knowing the outcome of the gunfight. Check out the video and pick up on this analysis below.

10-Minute Training Session
So, what did we see? We see Allen — dressed in desert fatigues similar to that which he’d worn during his 2009-2012 stint as a U.S. Army Reservist — immediately exit his vehicle, square off in a fighting stance, put his right hand behind his back at the waistband, and shout at the officer.

No disrespect to Trooper Zistel — more on his outstanding performance in a minute — but there were at least five pre-attack indicators present in that incident.

1. Exiting: In countless dashcam videos in which we see a gunfight or other use-of-force confrontation take place, the first thing we see is the subject exiting the car. Sometime a subject will get back into their car and still pose a deadly threat, and subjects who stay in their car always must be considered a threat until proven otherwise, but “He jumped from his car and attacked...” is a phrase we’ve seen many times.
2. Stance: A suspect who squares off at a cop cannot be dismissed as merely “bluffing” their intent to harm you. Someone squares up at you, he (or she) is a threat — plain and simple.
3. Hands: In the immortal words of my very dear friend and Police1 Colleague J.D. Buck Savage — uh, Dave Smith — “Watch the hands!” An estimated 90 percent of the population is right handed. This subject never moved his right hand from his right rear waistband until the moment he drew that gun and fired.
4. Compliance: Even when ordered back into the vehicle numerous times, the suspect stood his ground, totally non-compliant with verbal commands. Alarm bells. Enough said.
5. Clothing: If not for the other indicators, the clothing would have little relevance, but given the exiting, the stance, the hands, and the non-compliance, red flags immediately go up. You can’t judge a book by its cover, but you can judge a book’s cover.

Trooper Zistel, American Hero
There were many things in this incident that were done to perfection.

Number one: Trooper Zistel won.

He’s recovering from his injuries (apparently still on administrative leave), and we all send our best wishes for his speedy recovery and return to the streets.

What else did he do well? This one seems obvious — and really, it is — but every so often I hear about an officer who did not call in the description of a vehicle he or she was stopping for a traffic violation. When Allen took off, dispatch already had the description for responding officers.

Trooper Zistel also “got off the X” and returned accurate fire. We can’t see him, but from the actions of the suspect (turning his head to follow Zistel’s movement) we know that our hero moved to the rear of the squad and squeezed off at least one round.

One round hit the violator, and it was fatal.

You can’t miss fast enough. Accuracy beats speed every time, all the time.

Trooper Zistel was also in control and calm in his communications to dispatch even after being shot.

“Shots fired. Shots fired,” Zistel told dispatch. “I’ve been hit in the side. I’m OK.”

As I’ve previously written, by merely telling other responding units that your wounds are not life-threatening, you may save lives.

We all know that “officer down” and “officer needs assistance” calls result in gas pedals being smashed into the floorboards. This can put those officers and anyone in their path at risk. Sometimes that risk is absolutely necessary and worthwhile. In cases like this one, where you know you’re not badly hit, that risk just isn’t worth it.

One last thing: The fact that Allen got back into his car after being fatally struck in the chest, drove a half mile from the scene of the shooting, and pulled over to the side of the road to die is a lesson in itself. There was no visible entry wound on his chest, and he had full body function for some time after being hit.

The human body is an amazing thing. If you’re hit, you’re not necessarily dead. Keep fighting. If your adversary is hit and he’s still a threat, keep fighting.

Win, and go home safe.

Doug Wyllie writes police training content on a wide range of topics and trends affecting the law enforcement community. Doug was a co-founder of the Policing Matters podcast and a longtime co-host of the program.

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