Two ‘heroic’ SWAT team members are suspended without pay for disobeying orders and responding to Florida high school massacre while ‘cowardly’ deputies cowered outside
Detectives Jeffrey Gilbert and Carl Schlosser were suspended on February 22
The two rushed to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when they heard there was an active shooter
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office never called for the team to respond
Miramar Police Department spokeswoman Tania Rues said it created a danger for the officers who were responding
But the police department union said the two men were ‘brave’ and ‘heroic’
By MARY KEKATOS
DAILYMAIL.COM
9 March 2018
Two Florida SWAT team members have been suspended after responding to the Florida massacre without their bosses’ permission.
Detectives Jeffrey Gilbert and Carl Schlosser – as identified by the Florida Sun-Sentinel – did not tell superiors that they were going to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School where mass shooter Nikolas Cruz, 19, killed 17 people.
After they jumped into action without following protocol, the two were suspended from the Miramar Police Department’s ‘privileged program’ on February 22 and were ordered to surrender their SWAT-issued rifles.
The SWAT members’ suspension applied to the SWAT team, department spokeswoman Tania Tues said on Wednesday, adding that they’ll remain on active duty for other assignments.
Miramar’s SWAT team had been training in Coral Springs near the high school at the time of the shooting rampage and was placed on standby after the active-shooter report came in.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office never called for the team to respond.
Police response plans across the country have been changed to avoid having cops swarm to scenes. A crowd of arriving law enforcement can cause road blocks needed by ambulances, overwhelm radios and potentially add to more confusion.
The president of the police officers’ union disagreed with the department’s decision and called the officers ‘brave and heroic’.
‘While it may have been a violation of policy to not notify their supervisors that they were going there, their intentions were brave and heroic, I think,’ Jeff Marano, president of the Broward County Police Benevolent Association, told the Florida Sun-Sentinel on Wednesday.
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