7/20 Theater Shooting Aurora, Colorado July 20, 2012 - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Surviving the Media Frenzy 7/20 Theater Shooting Aurora, Colorado July 20, 2012 CONFIDENTIAL

THIS IS A CONFIDENTIAL BRIEFING THIS IS A CONFIDENTIAL BRIEFING IN REFERENCE TO LAW ENFORCEMENT IN REFERENCE TO LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE MATERIAL SENSITIVE MATERIAL People v. Holmes Court-Imposed Gag Order: People v. Holmes Court-Imposed Gag Order: “… law enforcement officers shall not release or “… law enforcement officers shall not release or authorize the release of any extrajudicial statement for authorize the release of any extrajudicial statement for dissemination by means of public communication, if the dissemination by means of public communication, if the law enforcement officers know or reasonably should law enforcement officers know or reasonably should know that it will have a substantial likelihood of know that it will have a substantial likelihood of prejudicing a criminal proceeding.” prejudicing a criminal proceeding.”

City of Aurora Police Districts, Square Miles, and Population (2011) District Square Miles Population 1 19 125,497 2 100 88,233 3 53 121,375 Totals 172 335,105 LAW ENFORECEMENT SENSITIVE

City of Aurora Violent Crime Statistics 2011 and 2012 Including C16 VIOLENT CRIMES 2011 2012 % Change Murder 12 29 +141.7% (C16 Victims) (12) Sex Assault (Rape) 186 179 (-3.8%) Robbery Incidents 515 483 (-6.2%) Aggravated Assault 754 802 6.4% C16 Victims (57) Violent Crime Totals 1,467 1,493 +1.8% LAW ENFORECEMENT SENSITIVE

City of Aurora Non-Fatal Shootings 2011 and 2012 Non-Fatal Shootings 2011 2012 % Change Shooting Incidents 30 39 30.0% (C16 Event) (1) Shooting Victims 38 96 156.6% (C16 Victims) (57) LAW ENFORECEMENT SENSITIVE

Aurora Police Department Aurora Police Department Personnel (790 total): Personnel (790 total): 670 Sworn Members 670 Sworn Members 120 Civilian Members 120 Civilian Members 2013 Budget 2013 Budget Total: Total: $92,672,223.00 $92,672,223.00 CONFIDENTIAL

 Two full-time PIO’s • Sworn members  Rotate 24 –hour on-call weekly – Friday mornings  PIOs are primary department spokespeople  PIO’s handle OISs, homicides, etc.  Chief will speak on personnel matters and few other things – case by case  Chief values PIO and has clear understanding of our role and the media’s role

 Number used internally by PD and by media to reach on-call PIO.  Has many benefits to include: • Carrying only 1 phone • Keeping personal number private • Easily switch the phones for on-call • Voicemail transcription Some negative aspects were discovered that we will cover later

 Denver market ranked number 17  4 Network Stations  One Major Newspaper  One Local Newspaper

Radio 

The Shooting CONFIDENTIAL LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE

 First 911 call 00:39 hours  First call to on-call PIO 00:45 hours by local CBS.  Second call few minutes later from local NBC.  PIO called dispatch and got limited information.  0110 hours PIO headed toward scene.  Called PIO sergeant while en route  Arrived on scene by 0120 hours

 Received first national media call at 0148 hours – They do not stop for 3 days.  First international call at 0221 hours.  Not really answering calls at this point because still trying to solidify information.  Determined first press briefing will be at 0315 hours.  Email and Tweet go out at 0249 announcing this

 How many dead  How many victims  Public safety  Reunification location

 Managing the media  Managing the media  Initial press briefing, 0315 hours outside theater  Initial press briefing, 0315 hours outside theater  Chief Oates and FBI SAC  Chief Oates and FBI SAC  Message:  Message: • Reassurance: competent initial response; • Reassurance: competent initial response; thorough investigation underway thorough investigation underway • Apparently a lone gunman, who is in custody • Apparently a lone gunman, who is in custody • No indication of broader terrorism plot, but still • No indication of broader terrorism plot, but still investigating investigating • Paris Street residence hazard • Paris Street residence hazard • Initial numbers on killed and injured • Initial numbers on killed and injured • Announce 11:00 a.m. briefing to follow • Announce 11:00 a.m. briefing to follow

 After the initial press conference Ofc. Fania responded to headquarters to write the first of only two press releases.

 See that media is airing the phone number to the front desk. THIS REQUIRES IMMEDIATE ATTENTION  Plans for EOC set up occur around 0530 hours  Former PIO arrives around 6:00 a.m. to assist.  She is tasked with assisting with setting up EOC and additional media lines.  A fellow metro area PIO is called in to help manage phone lines.

 Called in officer to run just the social media.  Briefing at 1015 hours. with key players to include top brass, investigators, FBI, ATF, city and state officials, District Attorney’s Office. Coordination of press conference.  Continued to put out Tweets announcing reunification location (0500), phone lines once set up (0715)  Also used Twitter when receiving a lot of same question – i.e. release of 911 tapes (Tweet at 1021 hours)

 Chief Oates and FBI SAC addressed media on Paris Street briefly.  Worked with City Personnel to set up media staging and location for future press conferences. On city property so that it was more convenient for city officials.  Media lines up and running answering calls.  Doing our best to monitor media.

 Top officials spoke  Details of the investigation are left primarily to the Chief of Police throughout the incident.  Elected officials talked about community, safety, etc.

 Organized staffing for coming days. Set up schedule of area PIOs to work media phone lines.  7 p.m. press conference.  Briefing with all the key players prior to press conference. Same format of speakers.  Had PIOs watching live taking so we could ensure a consistent message.

 Following press conference bullet points were sent out to media and posted on Facebook. This was a very valuable way of disseminating information and it was continued throughout event.

Updated Media Points Updated at 2:30p.m. on July 20, 2012 General information on shooting •71 victims total – 12 of which are confirmed dead, 59 others injured. •10 victims died in the theater 2 died later at area hospitals. •Victims were transported by police, ambulance and by personal vehicles to several area hospitals. •VICTIM IDENTIFICATION IS STILL IN PROCESS - THE FAMILIES OF THE VICTIMS HAVE NOT YET BEEN NOTIFIED. Reasons being, this is still an active investigation at the crime scene. •APD HAS NOT RELEASED ANY INFORMATION OR NAMES OF VICTIMS. We ask that people respect the privacy of these families. Resources are being offered to victims and families. •Police have interviewed over 200 witnesses. Police have not been able to verify all witness statements at this time. •In cooperation with the investigation, The Aurora Town Center decided to close for the day.

SUSPECT •James Eagen Holmes (12/13/87) •No arrest booking photos will be released. •AURORA criminal record consists of only a traffic summons. •The suspect will not appear in court today. We anticipate this will be early next week. ACTUAL SHOOTING INCIDENT •How the suspect entered the theater is still under investigation. •Any motive is still unknown. •We are confident that the shooter acted alone. However we are following up on all leads. •The suspect deployed 2 devices in the theater. These devices released some smoke or some sort of irritant. •The suspect then opened fire. •First officers were on scene within a minute and a minute and half of the first 911 call. •Officers contacted Holmes outside of the movie theater by his car. He was arrested without incident. There were 4 guns recovered, one of which was in the theater. The guns included AR 15, shotgun, and two handguns. •He was outfitted in complete ballistic gear included a ballistic helmet, vest, shin guards, groin and throat protector. He also had a gas mask.

SUSPECT’S RESIDENCE •1690 Paris Street, Aurora. Which is an apartment building and all residents have been evacuated. •Still a very active scene. Several local, state and federal agencies responded to initial scene and remain active on the Paris Street Address. •The apartment appears to be “booby trapped” therefore no entry has been made by Law Enforcement. A robot was sent in and it appears there are several items and devices located within residence. ANTICIPATED UPDATES •Press conference is set for 7 PM at the Aurora Municipal Center located at 15151 E Alameda Pkwy in the southwest parking lot. •If breaking news develops, media will be notified via Twitter (@aurorapd). •Intermittent updates will be post on Twitter “@aurorapd” and Facebook “Aurora Police Department”. •No independent interviews will be conducted at this time.