SWAT ROUNDUP INTERNATIONAL 2011

The 2011 SWAT Roundup International (SRI) featured 59 tactical teams from the United States, Russia, Kuwait, Hungary, Aruba, Bosnia, Jamaica and Sweden. The annual six-day event consisted of training classes and seminars, a trade show by over 100 vendors and manufacturers, and the legendary head-to-head tactical competition.

For pictures and a write-up on the event check out:

 

http://www.tactical-life.com/online/exclusives/swat-roundup-international-2011/

U.S. SWAT SNIPER CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2011 U.S. SWAT Sniper Championships (USSSC), held October 17 and 18 at the United States Shooting Academy, was hosted by the Tulsa, Oklahoma, Sheriff’s Office. Thirty-one tactical precision rifle teams competed in five difficult stages during the annual sniper competition. This year’s winner was Oklahoma County’s first sniper team, with eight points separating them from the second place La Plata County.

 

More info and photos

SWAT Roundup International 2010

SRI 2010 featured 51 tactical teams, judges and nationally renowned instructors from 81 agencies, 22 states and 12 countries including teams from Kuwait, Hungary, Canada, Bosnia, Jamaica, Germany, Brazil and The United States.

 

The SWAT Roundup International (SRI) 2010 was held November 7 - 12 at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office firearms range just outside Orlando, Florida. The SRI 2010 featured 51 Tactical teams, judges and nationally renowned instructors from 81 agencies, 22 states and 12 countries including teams from Kuwait, Hungary, Canada, Bosnia, Jamaica, Germany, Brazil and The United States. The six day symposium consisted of education and training seminars, a trade show by over a hundred vendors and manufacturers as well as the legendary head-to-head tactical competition.

Each eight member team was challenged with five events that included the Tower Scramble, Hostage Rescue, Pritcher Scramble, Officer Rescue and the grueling 16 stage obstacle course. Each competitor had to wear their mission ready uniform and gear during the events. Each event is designed to physically stress the competitors even before they reach the firing line by running, climbing, rappelling and crawling through water and clinging mud that coats their gear and weapons.

The overall SRI winner was the Lakeland Police Department BLUE (Florida) with second place going to Marion County Sheriff’s Office (Florida) followed by Hungarian TEK Team Nine (Hungary), Osceola County Sheriff’s Office (Florida) and Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (Florida) in fifth. The tremendous San Antonio team withdrew from the competition to return to Texas in response to a shootout that left some of their fellow team members wounded during an operation. The sobering news made many more of the competitors want to accompany the San Antonio officers to assist in the on-going investigation.

The SRI competition event is considered by the competitors and their agencies as a premier training opportunity and gives teams the ability to find out what works during use and under stress as well as providing officers with a better ability to protect their home jurisdictions.

 

The date for SRI 2011 is currently scheduled for November 6 – 11, 2011 and for more information about the SWAT Roundup International please view swatroundup.net.

 

SWAT Round Up International 2010 Final Standings

Standing Team Points

1 Lakeland Police Department BLUE (FL) 243
2 Marion County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 217
3 Hungarian TEK Team Nine (Hungary) 215
4 Osceola County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 210
5 Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 206
6 NASA Kennedy Space Center (FL) 199
7 Citrus County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 196
8 Lakeland Police Department RED (FL) 195
9 Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (FL) 192
10 Brevard County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 188
11 Hungarian TEK Team Six (Hungary) 183
12 Hamilton Police Department (OH) 181
13 Lake County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 180
14 Gainesville Police Department (FL) 180
15 Kissimmee Police Department (FL) 175
16 Collier County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 171
17 Orlando Police Department BLACK (FL) 169
18 Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 167
19 Orlando Police Department GOLD (FL) 158
20 Orange County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 157
21 San Antonio Police Department (TX) 153
22 Winter Park Police Department (FL) 144
23 Escambia County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 143
24 Plano Police Department (TX) 143
25 Canton Sarajevo (Bosnia) 142
26 Leesburg Police Department (FL) 140
27 Kuwait SWAT (Kuwait) 138
28 Brevard County Corrections (FL) 130
29 SEK Niedersachsen RED (Germany) 126
30 Neenah Police Department (WI) 124
31 Orange County Corrections (FL) 122
32 Cape Coral Police Department (FL) 120
33 Lake Mary Police Department (FL) 112
34 St. Petersburg Police Department (FL) 100
35 Durham Regional Police (Canada) 96
36 Pinellas Park Police Department (FL) 91
37 Irvine Police Department (CA) 88
38 SEK Niedersachsen WHITE (Germany) 87
39 Waynesville Police Department (NC) 87
40 U.S. Penitentiary Hazelton (WV) 66
41 Anti Organized Crime (Hungary) 60
42 Eustis Police Department (FL) 58
43 Ft. Campbell SRT (KY) 58
44 Jamaican Firearms & Tactical Training (Jamaica) 54
45 Palm Bay Police Department (FL) 50
46 Seminole County Sheriff’s Office (FL) 49
47 North Miami Beach SRT (FL) 48
48 South Florida Joint Tactical Response Team (FL) 38
49 Davie Police Department (FL) 34
50 SOE-DHPP (Brazil) 23
51 Florida Counterdrug (FL) 18

Source and more photos

SWAT Birth

"I would like to take this opportunity to bring your attention to three forward thinking individuals. These three officers, due to their actions almost 50 years ago, are responsible for many of the tactics and specialized equipment used by officers throughout the world today. What they accomplished in the late 1960s opened the door for an entirely new way of thinking for police departments. These individuals are Officer John Nelson, a young inspector by the name of Darryl F. Gates and then-deputy police chief Ed Davis (all with the Los Angeles Police Department).

Why are these three individuals important? Officer Nelson originally came up with the concept of a specially equipped and highly trained unit. Inspector Gates spear headed the push to make it happen and Ed Davis had the foresight to approve the program. S.W.A.T. was created by these men.

In the mid to late 1960s there were quite a few high profile shootings that caught the attention of national media. As a response to the occurrences, including the WATTS Riots, it was determined that a new tactic to deal with potentially lethal force was needed.

At this point I'd like to mention that, during my research, several sources noted that the nation first saw a high-risk team operate in Delano, California. This was in response to the farm worker uprisings led by the then-new United Farm Workers, headed by Cesar Chavez. In the 1960s the Delano Police Department formed a department wide team that received training in counter sniper, counter force and crowd control. However, the "team" didn't identify itself as a special weapons or a special tactics unit. While it touched on the concept and operational guidelines, the department didn't actually authorize or form a SWAT team.

The term SWAT was coined by Gates and originally stood for Special Weapons Assault Team. However, Ed Davis insisted that it sounded too militaristic and Gates toned it down to Special Weapons And Tactics; the common name and acronym that is so widely known and used today.

Gates really liked the acronym SWAT (what's not to like?). This first SWAT unit initially consisted of fifteen teams of four men each, for a total staff of sixty. The LAPD SWAT units were organized as D Platoon in the Metro division and were called upon to secure police facilities during times of unrest.

The first significant call out for the LAPD SWAT unit came on December 9, 1969 in a four-hour confrontation with the Black Panthers. While serving search warrants for illegal weapons at the Panther's headquarters (located at 41st and Central Streets) the Panthers began a shootout with the 40 SWAT officers. After thousands of rounds were fired (on both sides), only three officers and three Panthers were injured. (that one shoot out can inspire hundreds of articles and conversations about weapons discipline and the need for more accurate fire.)

In 1984 the city of Los Angeles hosted the Summer Olympics. This would present the greatest potential threat to the city since the WATTS Riots. LAPD SWAT was called upon to hone their skills and develop strategies to counter the increase global terrorism. Do in part to their diligence, the Summer Olympics went off without incident.

SWAT teams today handle a variety of types of duties to include Executive Protection, hostage rescue, barricade resolution, high risk warrant service and a myriad collection of all the other assignments administrators don't know who else to assign. LAPD SWAT currently handles (on average) approximately 100 barricaded suspect incidents and over 120 high-risk warrants a year."

Charles Bennett was born in Washington and grew up in the Maryland suburbs. Mr. Bennett has been working in all aspects of the publishing industry since the late 1980s primarily in the fields of commercial photography and magazine production. Moving to California in 1992 to attend college resulted in B.F.A and Masters degrees. California also supplied Mr. Bennett with his wife. The two of them are avid sports persons and participate in shooting, scuba diving, surfing, running and bicycling. As a long time hobby Mr. Bennett has studied the legends of American law enforcement which led to his writing these columns.