Lieutenant Brendan Kane of Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office provided a brief explanation of the ALERRT (Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training) program that LCSO has been trained on to the Wiscasset School Committee Aug. 9.

“It is the model we use for teaching response to any type of violence at schools, hospitals or any other workplaces where a dangerous threat, such as an active shooter, is taking place,” said Kane.

Created at Texas State University, the program’s “Avoid, Deny, Defend” strategies have been taught at many schools throughout Maine, said Kane.

“We have taught it in Dresden, Bristol and Damariscotta,” said Kane, who was accompanied by Wiscasset Police Officer Jonathan Barnes, LCSO Chief Deputy Rand Maker and longtime Lincoln Academy school resource officer and former LCSO Deputy Mark Bridgham.

According to www.avoiddenydefend.org, the three main strategies include:

AVOID starts with your state of mind.

– Pay attention to your surroundings

– Have an exit plan

– Move away from the source of the threat as quickly as possible

– The more distance and barriers between you and the threat, the better

DENY when getting away is hard or maybe even impossible.

– Keep distance between you and the source

– Create barriers to prevent or slow down a threat from getting to you

– Turn the lights off and silence your phone

– Remain out of sight and quiet by hiding behind large objects

DEFEND because you have the right to protect yourself.

–If you cannot AVOID or DENY, be prepared to DEFEND yourself

– Be aggressive and committed to your actions

– Do not fight fairly. THIS IS ABOUT SURVIVAL.

Call 911 when you are in a safe area. When law enforcement arrives, show your hands and follow commands.

“Keeping the schools safe is our top priority,” said Interim Superintendent Robert “Bob” England.

The committee thanked Kane for his presentation and will consider using the LCSO for ALERRT training.