Calaveras Schools And Law Enforcement Address Safety Concerns
San Andreas, CA — Taking a forward-leaning approach in response to nationwide school shootings is the focus of a letter sent by Calaveras County leaders to the community.
It comes ahead of the upcoming school year and was signed by leaders from the Calaveras Sheriff’s Office, Angels Camp Police Department, Calaveras Office of Education, Bret Harte Union High School District, Calaveras Unified School District, Mark Twain Elementary School District and the Vallecito Union School District.
You can read it below:
To the Calaveras County Community,
Unfortunately, there have been several active shooter incidents across the nation. The most recent school incident at the time of this letter was Robb Elementary School in Uvalde Texas. Since then, the Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office and Angels Camp Police Department, and our schools have received inquiries regarding the preparedness if a tragedy of similar nature would unfold in our jurisdiction. For the past several years, our offices have embraced a forward-leaning proactive approach to emergency preparedness by coordinating closely with all stakeholders who would be affected by an active shooter situation.
We conduct training that incorporates coordination with fire personnel, emergency medical staff, school staff, and law enforcement officers from all disciplines within our jurisdictions. The training includes policy review, tabletop discussions, and scenario-based exercises. In addition to honing tactics to stop any deadly threat, law enforcement officers also receive advanced emergency medical training to provide aid once the active event has concluded. We would like to assure the citizens of Calaveras County that law enforcement officers in this county are properly prepared if they find themselves in a deadly attack, whether at a school or any other venue.
Angels PD currently has a School Resource Officer (SRO) and with the increases in recent staffing at the Sheriff’s Office, they have been able to fill the vacant school resource officer position. The school’s resource officers have SWAT training and have received advanced training in tactical situations. The SROs will also undergo training by our in-house A.L.I.C.E trainer. (A.L.I.C.E is a national active shooter preparedness training and education program that prepares law enforcement and school staff on what to do in an active shooter incident). All our schools in Calaveras County participate in A.L.I.C.E. training and practice drills.
Law enforcement response during an active shooter situation is only part of the puzzle that can help keep our schools safe. We would like to encourage anyone who has any information regarding threats of violence to contact the appropriate Law Enforcement Officer, ACPD or the Calaveras County Sheriff’s office, to initiate an investigation immediately upon learning the information. Studies have shown that there have been several incidents where vital information has not been shared. PLEASE if you see or hear something contact local law enforcement immediately DO NOT WAIT.
Rest assured, our schools and law enforcement are continuously working to ensure safety. Understand that our law enforcement will not wait to engage any person who threatens or actively engages in harming any of our citizens. We are trained to go directly to the active threat to stop their actions as quickly as possible.
Sincerely,
Calaveras County Sheriff’s Department
Angels Camp Police Department
Calaveras County Office of Education
Bret Harte Union High School District
Calaveras Unified School District
Mark Twain Union Elementary School District
Vallecito Union School District
