> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://media.proudamericanstudios.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Jim Etzin: The Active Violence Briefing That Will Define Your Agency for a Generation - URL: https://media.proudamericanstudios.com/podcasts/jim-etzin-the-active-violence-briefing-that-will-define-your-agency-for-a-generation/ - Published: 2026-05-19T18:03:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-14T17:59:18.000Z - Description: Jim Etzin of Oakland County Tactical Consortium explains why Uvalde’s children were “doomed captives,” how offenders are now ambushing responding officers, and the standard every agency in America must meet. Watch on Proud American Studios. - Author: Editor-in-Chief, Proud American Studios - Tags: The Hero Next Door, podcast, U.S. Law Enforcement & Public Safety [Watch the Full Episode Now on Proud American Studios](https://app.proudamericanstudios.com/programs/heronextdoor?cid=4876075&permalink=the-hero-next-door-ep-5-jim-etzin-active-violence-response&ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) > There’s no community out there that is immune from this violence. If that test comes, and public perception is that we failed it, it will define your agency for a generation. And good luck with your recruitment and retention. — Jim Etzin, Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services Coordinator at the Oakland County Tactical Consortium In this episode of *The Hero Next Door*, host [Darcy Leutzinger](https://proudamericanstudios.com/team/darcyleutzinger?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) and co-host [John Adams](https://proudamericanstudios.com/team/johnadams?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) sit down with [Jim Etzin, Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services Coordinator at the Oakland County Tactical Consortium](https://otoa.org/staff/4540?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com). Etzin is one of the country’s foremost authorities on active violence response, a former Navy corpsman with Marine Corps units, a 29-year fire service veteran, the founder of the [International Tactical EMS Association](https://www.facebook.com/InternationalTacticalEMSAssociation/), and the creator of the [North American Active Assailant Conference](https://www.facebook.com/p/North-American-Active-Assailant-Conference-100072154118342/). What follows is an operational briefing that every first responder, agency leader, and concerned American needs to hear. ## The moment everything changed In 1984, a gunman walked into a McDonald’s restaurant in San Ysidro, California, just miles from the international border. Jim Etzin was living in San Diego at the time. That massacre set him on a path he has never left. “That was a life-changing event for me,” Etzin says, “and really set me on the journey that I continue on today.” Decades later, it was Columbine High School that forced the entire profession to rethink its approach. “The tragedy at Columbine resulted in a paradigm shift. These incidents are not a SWAT problem. They’re a patrol problem, and they’re often over in minutes.” The expectation that emerged was stark: initial arriving officers must enter immediately, bypass casualties if necessary, and stop the killing. Training evolved from holding for SWAT, to assembling four-person contact teams, to where we are today: solo officer entry. In most American communities, one officer will arrive first. The violence may still be happening. That officer is expected to go in alone. ## The offenders are evolving faster than the training When asked about the most dangerous current trend, Etzin doesn’t hesitate: offenders are ambushing initial arriving law enforcement officers. “They study their predecessors. In some instances, they’re replicating past tactics or trying to improve on them.” He points to a chilling example: one attacker wore hearing protection visible on surveillance cameras. The footage aired on the news. The next day, a different attacker in a different city googled the first offender and chose to wear hearing protection himself. The implication is direct. Officers can no longer simply rush to the front door. Training must now account for tactical vehicle positioning, cover and concealment, and counter-ambush awareness before an officer ever reaches the interior. ## Four priorities. In order. Etzin lays out the operational framework every responder should know. **Stop the killing.** Law enforcement’s primary mission, though armed civilians are increasingly intervening before officers arrive, creating identification challenges for responding units. **Stop the dying.** An all-hands responsibility. Officers now carry tourniquets and bleeding control equipment. Community members trained in [Stop the Bleed](https://www.stopthebleed.org/?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) own the emergency for the first critical minutes. **Stop the crying.** If the first two are executed well, the emotional toll on victims and responders is reduced. “When those emergency responders put their head on the pillow later that night, they’re going to ask themselves: were we prepared?” **Timely and compassionate death notifications.** “This is something we have historically screwed up 11 out of 10 times.” The last people standing at family reunification centers are almost always the families of the deceased. [Watch the Full Episode Now on Proud American Studios](https://app.proudamericanstudios.com/programs/heronextdoor?cid=4876075&permalink=the-hero-next-door-ep-5-jim-etzin-active-violence-response&ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) ## Doomed captives: the concept every American should understand Etzin introduces a term that should disturb anyone who hears it. A “doomed captive” is a victim lying inside an active scene, dying unnecessarily because of delays in the response. He names Pulse nightclub in Orlando. And then he names Uvalde. “In Uvalde, Texas, there were multiple examples of actionable intelligence where public safety was notified that there were people injured and suffering within that space. Those children and teachers within that room were, by definition, doomed captives.” The standard he sets is absolute: once responders have intelligence that people are hurt inside, they must move with almost the same urgency as if responding to active gunfire. Silence is not safety. It may be people bleeding out. ## “At least one alpha” When asked what it takes to push officers through gunfire when the situation demands it, Etzin’s answer is direct: “What these scenes need, as much as anything, is at least one alpha. Whether that person has formal rank or not. We just need someone to step up and say, hey, we’ve got to go.” ## The training gaps that could cost lives Etzin identifies two critical shortfalls. First: most active shooter training focuses on interior work while ignoring the exterior approach, where ambushes now happen. Second: almost all exercises take place during the day. “Evil loves the darkness,” he says. He advocates for nighttime mass-casualty exercises even once every three to five years, because darkness reveals vulnerabilities that daytime training never will. ## When ambulances aren’t coming fast enough At the Century 16 theater in Aurora, Colorado, 26 victims were transported to hospitals by patrol vehicle. In Dayton, 19\. In Lewiston, Maine, at least 10\. Every one of those officers would have preferred to defer to fire and EMS. But people were dying at their feet and no other option existed. “It’s going to come down to: Mongo see bleeding, Mongo take bleeding person to hospital,” Etzin says. The culture of law enforcement is to show up, look for work, take initiative, and solve problems. ## The warning Etzin’s closing message is aimed at every agency in America, large or small: “There’s no community out there that is immune from this violence. If that test comes, and public perception is that we failed it, it will define your agency for a generation. And good luck with your recruitment and retention.” Watch the [full episode](https://app.proudamericanstudios.com/programs/the-hero-next-door-ep-5-jim-etzin-active-violence-response?category%5Fid=276180&ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) on [Proud American Studios](https://proudamericanstudios.com/home?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com). [Watch the Full Episode Now on Proud American Studios](https://app.proudamericanstudios.com/programs/heronextdoor?cid=4876075&permalink=the-hero-next-door-ep-5-jim-etzin-active-violence-response&ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/61/7e/617ea0f9-9c68-4cf4-99c3-4aefef529f30/content/images/2026/02/Blue-Radial-Gradient-Background.png) ## ****Join Proud American Studios** Join a growing community of Americans who value faith, freedom, and country. Enjoy exclusive programming, member-only events, and a private community—all while saving over 50% with an annual membership. [BECOME A FOUNDING MEMBER](https://app.proudamericanstudios.com/join?ref=media.proudamericanstudios.com)