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Sergeant Daryl Giles, an SRO with the Philadelphia School Police Department, suffered a heart attack after breaking up a large fight in George Washington High School. He complained of chest pains, and was then found in a school restroom, unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
He had served in the Philadelphia School Police Department for 19 years, and was a U.S. Army veteran.
End of Watch: June 2, 2014
Thank you for your service, Sergeant Giles.
A 9-year old student was on the playground when parent volunteer lured her into a restroom in the school and assaulted her with a hammer. A security guard and a teacher walked in on the attack and was able to put a stop to it. The girl was taken to a nearby children’s hospital. The attacker has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon.
While there has been a lot of attention paid to Active Shooters in schools, schools should also be prepared for assaults using a variety of weapons. Claw hammers can make fearsome weapons, are easily concealed, and are readily available.
In the book Staying Alive: How to Act Fast and Survive Deadly Encounters, a couple named Abe and Erin are featured. They survived an assault in their home by a man wielding a hammer and a hatchet. Abe successfully fought off the attacker while being grievously wounded. His actions saved the lives of five people, including his own.
Abe in the hospital recovering from his hatchet and hammer wounds.
Schools should not focus on a single aspect of school emergency response, but on techniques and procedures that can be used in multiple types of incidents. Research shows it is best to use scenario-based training to build a base of knowledge from which to operate. Using different types of scenarios will build a broader base of knowledge.
The link below is the story of Abe and Erin’s ordeal.
At an elementary school in Canada, a nine-year old student started acting wildly out-of-control. In fact, the principal told the parents by phone that he was “acting out and holding people hostage”. The boy had gotten a hold of hockey sticks, and was in the hallways swinging them at his fellow students and staff. He then walked outside, whereupon the school went into lockdown, and the police were called.
The police found the boy at the front entrance kicking and hitting the door, and the student was handcuffed to prevent him from injuring himself. According to the boy’s mother, he has mental issues and is on medication. She says the school had just put a plan into place to help her son, including bringing in a youth worker who specializes in physically combative children.
