If a teacher in a nearby school activates a school shooting panic button, do you as a law enforcement officer (LEO) want instant notification, on duty or off duty?
“Of course you do,” says retired Illinois State Police Colonel Michael Snyders, President of the newly created Social Protection Network Foundation.
The Social Protection Network Foundation, referred to as the Hero Network™, dramatically increases the available pool of nearby police officers who can neutralize a threat in schools “when bullets are flying”. This innovative, free, smart phone app was invented exclusively for LEOs, to save children’s lives.
All federal, state, and local LEOs are encouraged to download the “restricted to police” smart phone Hero Network™ app that sends an immediate alert notification to officers in close proximity to a reported active school shooting. The smartphone technology displays a mapped location of the initial alert, the number of uniformed and number of non-uniformed officers who acknowledged the alert, along with a continuous timer that displays minutes and seconds since the emergency activation. The app also works nationwide, so LEOs will be alerted of an active school shooter incident even when traveling.
The teacher’s panic button app, which can only be activated on school grounds by school staff, is called SchoolGuard™. With the help and input from police, Guard911, LLC developed this school shooting panic button app that simultaneously calls 911, notifies every teacher’s smart phone within the school, and activates the Hero Network™ of police officers who have voluntarily downloaded the free app. In order to limit the Hero Network ™ response to school shootings only, the teacher’s panic button app also provides a separate “911 Only” button and a separate “Teacher Assist” button for intra school, non-shooting emergencies.
After receiving an active school shooting alert, LEOs are directed to communicate with the appropriate police jurisdiction and follow their home agency policy and response protocol if they choose to respond. Retired police officers certified per Title 18 USC § 926C as a “qualified retired law enforcement officer” are also authorized to download the free app as they might be in a situation to extend the eyes and ears of responding officers, which was the spirit of the retiree concealment carry act of 2004.
Snyders says there has been an overwhelming response to this innovative technology. The number of LEOs projected to participate in the Hero Network™ over the next twelve months is targeted at 100,000 active police officers, plus retirees.
Monte Newlin, Regional Superintendent of Schools in Illinois, says, “I am so enthusiastic about this product that I invited representatives from Guard 911 to meet with the district superintendents of the twelve public schools I serve in my five-county region in Southeastern Illinois. The response from those present was every bit as enthusiastic as was mine.”
“How many times in your career did you learn of a major incident after the fact, when you were nearby? A school shooting is the time for all hands on deck,” says Snyders. “We may never be able to prevent these extreme acts of violence but we MUST find a way to reduce police response time for when they do occur.”
The Hero Network™ adopted the phrase “When Seconds Save Lives™” and stresses the role of the off-duty police officers. Due to the nature of police schedules, at any given moment, most officers are off duty, many with take-home police cars full of emergency equipment. Even if on duty, the Hero Network ™app can alert the officers 60 seconds or more before the 911 Center dispatch. This app is simple and effective and a “must-have” for all LEOs.
The Hero Network™ app is available for free download via Apple iTunes store or Google Play store. This volunteer service is exclusive to all federal, state, local and tribal LEOs in the United States.
Download the free Hero Network™ app today.
