Content area
Full text
Introduction
Many police departments throughout the U.S. use Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams (Kraska, 1999). Typically, these units are deployed in risky situations that are violent or may turn violent. In 1980, an estimated 55% of large police departments (serving cities with a population of 50,000 or more) had a SWAT team; in the late 1990s, an estimated 90% of police departments had SWAT teams. In 1997, there were at least 29,000 cases where SWAT teams were deployed nationwide (Kraska, 1999).
Despite widespread growth in specialized tactical policing units, little research has been conducted to better understand them (Kraska & Paulsen, 1997). The purpose of this Bulletin is to provide an overview of SWAT teams in Texas.
History
A number of incidents in the 1960s and 1970s pointed to the need for a specialized police unit that could respond to those rare situations in which the traditional response was inadequate. The Watts riots in Los Angeles, California, that began on August 11, 1965, is a widely cited example (Bullock, 1969). A second event is the Whitman sniper incident at the University of Texas on August 1, 1966 (Lavergne, 1997). The incident was undoubtedly resolved through heroism and bravery, but lack of preparation for this type of incident caused more deaths than what may have otherwise occurred (Mijares, McCarthy, & Perkins, 2000).
The Watts riots and the sniper incident served as a catalyst for the creation of the nation's first SWAT team at the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD's SWAT team was created in the 1960s to handle violent and/or potentially violent situations, including kidnapping and hostage taking, violent criminals, and terrorist groups (Williams & Westall, 2003). LAPD SWAT gained nationwide attention in 1973 after neutralizing members of the Symbionese Liberation Army, a domestic terrorist group that carried out kidnappings and bank robberies. Throughout the U.S., other police departments followed suit, creating SWAT units to handle unrest in the population, political turmoil, and the crazed individual willing to commit mass violence.
SWAT Characteristics
SWAT teams have been described as the "fifth branch of the military." Not only do SWAT team members use weapons similar to their military counterparts, they also wear uniforms similar in effect and style to soldiers. Many SWAT team members have...