Including Disability: The Updated California Office of Emergency Services Active Shooter Awareness Guidance

Including Disability: The Updated California Office of Emergency Services Active Shooter Awareness Guidance

12th January, 2017

On December 2, 2015, terrorists attacked the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California. Because the center serves individuals with intellectual disabilities, initial reports indicated the attack was an assault on the disabled. Though we later learned this was not the case; the thought of an attack on individuals with disabilities raised serious concerns over the current lack of guidance regarding the access and functional needs (AFN) related considerations associated with an active shooter attack.

Through its Office of Access and Functional Needs (OAFN), the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) worked with Law Enforcement, the California Specialized Training Institute, the State Council on Developmental Disabilities and other disability stakeholders to revise the state's active shooter awareness guidance. The updated guidance, which is now publicly available, is the first-of-its-kind to integrate access and functional needs to promote the safety and security of individuals with disabilities and persons with access and functional needs before, during and after an active shooter attack.

Learning objectives:

  • Develop a familiarity with the Cal OES Active Shooter Awareness Guidance document and the process used to integrate access and functional needs within it.
  • Understand how to utilize the guidance to promote the safety, security and empowerment of individuals with disabilities and persons with access and functional needs.
  • Learn how to use the guidance to update their respective active shooter awareness resources.

Presenters:

Luis "Vance" Taylor is the Chief of the Office of Access and Functional Needs at the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services. Vance is responsible for ensuring the needs of individuals with disabilities and persons with access and functional needs are identified before, during and after a disaster and integrated into the State's emergency management systems. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Vance was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy as a child and uses a power wheelchair. He has worked in Washington, D.C. as an advisor for two different members of Congress, directed security policy at a national water association and been a principal at a top-ranked homeland security and emergency management consulting firm, Catalyst Partners, LLC. Vance is a nationally recognized public speaker and advocate for individuals with disabilities.

Scott McCartney is the Project Director of the Large Stadium Initiative and Active Shooter Training Coordinator with the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services and Homeland Security. Scott has earned national recognition as a Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP) from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Scott works in Law Enforcement with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. Mr. McCartney is the Public Safety Director of the California Capital Airshow and has held the positions of Traffic Chief and Incident Commander. Mr. McCartney also works on CALFIRE IMT #6 as the Law Enforcement Liaison and is a member on the California Incident Command Certification System (CICCS) Task Force as a Law Enforcement advisor.

Handouts: