www.student.oulu.fi/~hmikkola/shootout.html
NORTH HOLLYWOOD SHOOTOUT An event that took place in February 28th 1997. A series of bank robberies culminated in quite possibly the most violent shootout in modern American police history. The lives of 36 patrons and 12 employees were endangered when two heavily armed men wearing body armor decided to rob the Bank of America in North Hollywood. Seen entering the bank by Los Angeles police officers, the two men intimidated employees and patrons by firing shots inside while not realizing that Los Angeles police officers were surrounding the building. As they left the bank, the robbers became aware of their predicament and began shooting at police and civilians. Three civilians and nine officers were shot within the first five minutes of the shootout, and a total of 350 officers were called to the scene. As police bullets bounced off the suspects, it became evident that the two men were wearing body armor and had out-gunned the police with their armor piercing bullets and semiautomatic weapons. A total of seven civilians and eleven LAPD officers were injured. Despite the overwhelming odds, many heroic officers, while in grave danger, initiated officer and citizen rescues as the suspects continued to exchange shots with other officers. The suspects fired more than 1,100 rounds from their semiautomatic assault rifles. Eventually, one suspect committed suicide and members of the LAPD SWAT team shot and killed the other.
North Hollywood bank Shootout map According to Commander Scott LaChasse of the Los Angeles Police Department's (LAPD) Criminal Intelligence Group and Lt. A sidewalk kiosk, used for cover by officers on the scene, was perforated with 150 bullets. After the shooting stopped, more than 2,000 live rounds were found in the suspects' vehicle. Drums loaded with additional ammunition were found on the suspects' bodies. He was in jeopardy of execution until another officer, defying incoming rounds, drove a squad car to the downed officer and rescued him. The following is the chronology of the incident: 0900 PST - LAPD receive a bank robbery alarm at the Bank of America branch on Laurel Canyon Boulevard in North Hollywood. He continues to fire at police and television news helicopters. The suspect begins to transfer weapons from the car to the truck and gets in. Brave police officers approach, he gets out and there is a fierce firefight. Police continue to search for any additional bank robbers.
QuickTime movie) What Small and Large Agencies Can Learn One of the most compelling deadly force confrontations was played out for the entire world to see when the Los Angeles Police Department responded to a bank robbery of monumental proportions and of great tactical significance. Very few shootouts have provided us with the significant learning points that the North Hollywood Bank Robbery Shootout embodied. This incident, if reviewed with an eye toward "social" significance and recent law enforcement history in mind, is also an example of long held beliefs and traditional law enforcement concepts that are always under attack, but have been validated as the right way to train the police, because of this shooting. In order to evaluate this shooting with clarity, it is necessary to separate the significant issues and learning points by category. As the bank robbery was discovered by alert patrol officers, this analysis will begin with the category of initial response. An assessment of weaponry used by the police as well as those used by the suspects will follow. As review of the body armor issues from the armor worn by the police to the armor worn by the suspects will occur. Following the armor review, an inspection of the response and actions of the Los Angeles Police SWAT team will be done. Finally, a discussion of the long term significance of this incident and how it may change law enforcement for the better will follow. INITIAL OBSERVATION RESPONSE Uniform patrol officers were on routine patrol when they saw the bank robbers with ski masks over their faces and assault rifles in hand entering the bank. Immediate communication of what the officers had observed resulted in rapid response and excellent containment around the bank by the patrol forces that responded. As the robbers fired their assault rifles inside the bank and physically assaulted the men, women, and children who were employees and customers in the bank, the patrol containment grew. Many minutes went by while the robbers made every effort to steal all the money they could carry. More than three hundred and thirty thousand dollars was taken at gunpoint. As the robbers exited the bank, they were ordered to "freeze, drop your guns!" It was obvious to the officers that they were being shot at and wounded by a barrage of heavy weapons fire. This weapons fire was also wounding citizens trapped behind cars, proned out in streets and parking lots, fleeing on foot and in vehicles from the area. It was also obvious that the police were not going away. Although the officers were outgunned and out equipped, the patrol containment was complete, remained steadfast, and would not let the heavily armed suspects leave. There was a heavy price to pay for this bravery and devotion to duty. The initial observation and rapid deployment was accomplished through professional fundamental training. There is no question that cover and concealment aided officers in reducing the number that were wounded, but the incredible level of violence that was directed at the police and the sheer volume of gunfire that the suspects directed at the officers over a long period of time speaks volumes about their quality and performance of the patrol officers. As the suspects fled the bank and began their murderous full automatic assault rifle attack on the patrol officers, it was apparent that they were attempting to breach an escape route through the uniformed containment. The fact that a large number of officers were able to respond and deploy was a big component of a brave effort to hold the suspects at the bank. Large departments have an advantage in the availability of large numbers of officers to respond. The LAPD had approximately 15 patrol officers deployed around all four sides of the bank as the suspects exited. Small agencies must work together to ensure that similar crimes that are predictably going to happen to them have a multi-agency response that replicates a large agency activation. If only four or five officers were on scene at the North Hollywood Bank of America, the suspects would have breached containment the suspects would have been able to concentrate focus and gunfire on more specific targets. Several years ago, a similar robbery in the community of Norco, California, created a shootout of parallel dimensions. Five suspects with assault rifles and explosives robbed the bank in Norco and fled. They shot eleven police officers, killing one, and shot down a police helicopter during a pursuit that lasted for over an hour. Eventually all suspects were captured or killed, but the cost was high. BODY ARMOR - BANDITS AND SWAT We can learn much about body armor from the North Hollywood Shootout. While the suspects had armored themselves to the point they were protected from their feet to their necks, it was obvious they had "overdone" it. They were unable to move swiftly and with tactical flexibility and this hampered their ability to escape. They were unable to "flex" to the degree that they needed to take complete cover positions behind low profile cover. The SWAT officers that responded had a reasonable level of tactical armor protection and had mobility that allowed them to rapidly deploy from their vehicle. They were able to prone out and regain their feet rapidly.
SWAT RESPONSE The rapid and absolute aggressive tactics of the SWAT officers was paramount in the successful neutralization of the suspect Martasaurano. By resorting to their training and team concept of staying together and communicating, they were a united force. By being able to respond with assault rifles to match the suspect, and by laying down cover fire that was well aimed and very effective in keeping the suspect on the defens...
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