Today’s Would-Be Hostage
“Two-fox-nineteen,” an officer said over the radio, “I’ve been flagged down by a staff member from the Noname Bank located at the corner of Something St and Nowhere Ave. There’s a male inside the bank causing a disturbance and they need help having him removed.”
“Ten-four,” dispatch responded.
I was sitting in my car at that intersection so I radioed in that I was also at the bank and would assist. After being briefed by the officer, we approached the bank entrance together.
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The main doors led into the ATM machine area, which was separated from the rest of the bank by a set of glass doors and a glass wall.
I had time to take in a woman and a young child at the ATM when a flash of yellow drew my attention to the inside of the bank.
The flash of yellow was the jacket on a security guard. He was darting around on the other side of the glass and pointing frantically to another area of the bank. Several staff members were running around behind him, and one woman ducked beneath the counter.
“Oh shit,” I said under my breath, and my hand dropped to my sidearm.
“Radio to the units at the bank,” our dispatcher broke in, her voice full of concern, “The manager’s on the line – there’s a man with a gun inside the bank.”
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The officer with me went to contain the other exit as I drew my pistol and started to take cover.
Then I remembered the woman and child at the ATM – they would be in clear view of anyone inside the bank and would make ideal hostages. I could not go to them as I did not want the gunman to know the police were there, so I stayed rooted in the doorway and called out to them.
The woman turned and gasped, drawing her daughter tight to her side when she saw my uniform and gun. I told her to come to me NOW but she balked.
“What’s wrong?” she asked in a whisper.
“There’s a man with a gun inside the bank and I need you and your daughter to come here now,” I said, beckoning her with my free hand. I hoped she could tell by the tone of my voice that I was not messing around.
The woman instinctively placed her body between her child and the doors of the bank and started towards me. Just when I thought she was going to be out of harm’s way the woman stopped and pointed backwards.
“My bank card!”
And with that she stepped back to the machine with her child, pressed a button, and waited for the machine to spit her card out.
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The call ended minutes later. The suspect was in custody, no one was injured, the bank was secure.
And my mind was still reeling at the fact the mother actually thought it was okay to retrieve her bank card.
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People act differently when placed under stress. I understand that.
But I’m a mom. If I were at an ATM with my kids and a cop showed up in the doorway with her gun drawn and told me to beat feet, I’d not second guess her. My kids would be tucked up under my arms like two over-sized footballs and I’d be outta there to get my kids to a place of safety.
Then, of course, I’d come back to see what I could to do to help, but my kids are my first priority.
Is it just me, or would this rattle you, too?
24. October 2009 at 10:04 pm :
It’s baffling, but I also think many civilians are ignorant, and I don’t mean that in a derragatory way, but in its dictionary definition. They simply don’t have the knowledge of what occurs in the world on a day to day basis, and the potential for violence and evil out there. And that’s ok, I guess, because it means they get to live peaceful lives, completely unaware of what we see on a day to day basis. That is, as long as that violence and evil doesn’t intersect with their lives.
When it does, I guess you get the baffling reaction of a woman going back to get her ATM card with an armed offender yards away.
24. October 2009 at 10:47 pm :
Wow. First of all my heart was pounding until the very end of this post, but second of all, going back for your bank card when there’s a gunman possibly with his sights on you?!
Last week HF and his partner got a report of shots fired and it they were sent to an apartment complex. It was the middle of the night and most everyone was inside. He and the other responding officers had their guns drawn and were making their way towards the supposed place where the shots were reported coming from and a girl comes walking out and sees HF in full uniform, weapon out, clearing the area and he says to her, ” I need you to go back inside and go to your room.” She starts arguing with him! “Why?” “What are you doing?” etc. etc. He basically can’t get her to comply and so he more forcefully tells her to do what he says and she says all annoyed, “Fine!” He didn’t think much of it because they were busy getting to the bottom of the situation. Later he finds out that she had called 911 about him being there with a gun, thinking maybe it was somebody impersonating an officer, and wants to now meet with his superiors about the situation. It’s kind of baffling to everyone involved. We’re not even sure what it is she wants to complain about. Was it because he was “mean” to her because she didn’t do what he said, or what? And the chief says he backs HF up 100%. I just don’t understand why people can’t just move their butts when they see something like an officer with a gun looking for a bad guy and he’s asked you to move. FOR YOUR SAFETY. I don’t know. Drives me crazy and I’m not even dealing with these people. Especially if I had my children with me, my last thought would be waiting for the ATM to spit my card out. Interesting. I guess people feel invincible.
25. October 2009 at 7:18 am :
I think most civilians are unaware of how to react. We have also had too many warnings of protecting ourselves from identity theft beat into our brains. I think in her mind, she was “securing” everything in her little world. I know it doesn’t make sense and might seem like she was stupid but that is just how she knew to react.
There is a reason why certain people work in law enforcement and others don’t. Just like some people (me) can be hairdressers and others should have to get a license just to own a pair of scissors!
25. October 2009 at 9:02 am :
Chalk it up to inexperience … or perhaps a better word, would be naivete’. Most of us in the general public have little or no experience with truly dangerous situations.
So, we do what *we* are trained to do which, in this case, is never leave the credit card behind. And usually in hindsight, we recognize and become terrified at our ignorance and stupidity.
–
It is an odd but nonetheless valid and honoring testament to all LEOs that most in the general public have little or no experience in truly dangerous situations.
And for that I say, Thank you, Officer!
25. October 2009 at 10:04 am :
It’s the same strain of stupidity that causes people to walk up to cops with guns drawn, screaming and proning out suspects from a car, and ask for directions.
25. October 2009 at 11:24 am :
I love the “scissors” comment in the above Post! I am hoping that the woman at the ATM was in shock. Hoping……………. but not convinced.
I can recall interacting with an individual like “HF” was describing, more times than I would like to remember. Some folks are so wrapped up in their own importance, that they want, no, demand a full explanation of Orders being given, when seconds count. I put it down to the “question Authority” and “don’t say no, just let go” parenting, over the last couple of decades.
Unfortuanately, what these armchair defence lawyers, or whatever they think their role is, are more often than not, placing themselves, and Emergency Response Personel in danger.
But hey, what do I know? I am just a cranky old guy.
Cheers
25. October 2009 at 12:35 pm :
Driving home a few evenings ago we came to a large intersection with a Police car, lights flashing, in the center. It was not long after dusk and lighting was poor. There was one officer, alone, trying to control the traffic against what the traffic signal was doing. With three lanes in each direction plus double left-turn lanes, he really had his hands full.
But more than that, the emphasis he used in his body motions told me this was a big deal. His arm motions were big, dramatic and unequivocal. When he motioned us to Stop, I stopped “right there” and not one inch further.
So we waited and, minutes later, were waved ahead. As I drove carefully through the intersection, I was too busy watching the other drivers to look for anything else. And two blocks away, we had begun to forget the incident.
But hours later we heard on the news that a woman had been run over in the intersection … three times.
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My Dad was a surgeon and, growing up, I guess I got used to taking orders. It’s probably the same for children of drill Sergeants. In some situations in life, that upbringing has been a problem. In others, it has undoubtedly saved me from a lot of unpleasantness.
Mixed blessings.
25. October 2009 at 4:17 pm :
Yeah, it’s all of these. But people can be trained. Sometimes.
She probably went home and said, “I was so stupid, I went back for my bank card. I could have cancelled it right afterward, what was I thinking? I had Darling with me.”
Everyone at home said, “Yeah, you were stupid.” And that stopped the learning, right there. This person should think about what they did wrong–or, help the person think it out. (We were going to be late for Darling’s dentist appointment. This was now irrelevant in the face of life and death. I could have got someone killed, if not myself or Darling.)
About the guy with the map: there’s no hope for learning there. Duh.
Thanks for posting.
25. October 2009 at 5:42 pm :
Christopher – I’m glad (in a way) that most people are shielded against the pale underbelly of our society because that means they can sleep at night and not lay awake worrying about it. To be so lucky…
Mrs. Fuzz – It’s nice to hear HF’s boss supported him. How frustrating that situation must have been.
DU and Ed – I think you’re on to something with the identity theft fear. And DU – I’m clearly in the league of those who should NEVER be allowed near scissors. My poor son has suffered through a couple of bad trims.
RC – Been there!
Gary – You’re not cranky, you just call it for what it is.
Ann – I agree – the woman likely went home and slapped her hand to her forehead.
25. October 2009 at 6:19 pm :
I can understand the initial balk. Were I to be confronted by an officer with a drawn weapon my initial reaction would be to freeze until I had spent the mental cycles to determine that it wasn’t me they were after or processed the instructions I was being given.
The credit card recovery mission however was just stupid.
I’m one of those assertive, questioning type of individuals so let me just say “sorry”!
25. October 2009 at 7:32 pm :
An excellent example for non-officers of being prepared for anything–realizing what is important and what is not, and reacting appropriately. Planning can make a difference for anyone adn improve reactionary decisions.
26. October 2009 at 11:18 pm :
If it’s ever a hypothetical case of being afraid of identity theft vs. the safety of a family, why would anyone ignore the police officer’s orders?
Even if this gunman from the bank grabbed her precious debit card instead of bags full of cash that he might have planned on running off with, she would have been able to have it canceled long before he’d be able to crack her PIN code, right? Planning a funeral (or two) is way more expensive, inconvenient and heartbreaking than making a bloody phone call.
Sigh. I hope that she goes home, hugs her daughter, apologizes, and tries to smarten up.
2. December 2009 at 10:02 am :
I just found this blog, and really appreciate the perspective, Sandra. Thanks for doing this!
I can absolutely imagine why this woman behaved so counter-productively. In Canada, the only place that urban populations see people with guns is on TV. Years ago, in Edmonton, I saw police officers with guns drawn and it was a huge shock — as if a TV show suddenly broke out into my living room. Just not real. A person may well go into shock, *particularly* if they had their child with them, and not know what to prioritize. I know that I would freeze, and I’m quite sure that my decision-making skills would be impaired. On the subject, you may find Malcolm Gladwell’s “Blink” of interest.
As for the young woman who responded negatively to being ordered by the police officer, my interaction with police in the pursuit of their business has been generally unpleasant (not including getting tickets, of course!) (is this a good place to mention that I’m a very law-abiding, responsible Canadian citizen??) because of the tone taken and what comes across as the lack of respect, and bullying behaviour. I’m wondering if training might profitably include how to communicate more flexibly. Canadians in particular are accustomed to the concept that professionals address them courteously. As well, it might help police officers to investigate the theory that people are hard-wired to better respond to certain sentence structures than others: interrogative, statement-as-a-fact, challenge, and directive (“Language of the Subconscious”). Police officers overwhelmingly use, and probably respond best to, directive. It might be worth giving a try to a different wording if a person completely balks at directive, e.g., “See if you can’t hear me! You need to move! Are you hearing me!? (that’s challenge, statement-as-a-fact, and question)” The obvious objection will be that it takes too much time; however, how much time did the officer spend “forcing” the woman to obey?
So, just a few meandering thoughts because the subject matter is quite interesting.
Once again, Sandra, much thanks, both for the work that you, your partner, and fellow officers do, and for this opportunity to see inside the blue line.