Radio responses to the Parkland school killing, released Friday by the Broward Sheriff’s Office, provide clarity and detail about the way officers responded in the 14 minutes that followed the first shots fired, WFOR-TV reported. The full audio is below:
Controversy about police response has centered on the actions of former Broward County Sheriff’s Deputy Scot Peterson, who was the armed school resource officer at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School at the time of the massacre.
Sheriff Scott Israel previously announced that video showed Peterson standing for more than four minutes outside the building where students were under fire, and Israel said Peterson should have “went in. Addressed the killer. Killed the killer.”
Peterson had maintained publicly that he believed the gunfire was coming from outside on campus, but the recordings reveal that Peterson reported gunfire in the building in his first response to Broward County Sheriff's Office dispatch.
The recordings also included calls with fearful parents and dispatch operators trying to calm and comfort students and instruct them on how to proceed safely until the police arrived.
"I love you, I love you, it's going to be fine," one mother said to her daughter who was hiding in the school, while also on the phone with a 911 operator. "Can you hide from there? Can you play dead? Can you play dead? I need you to play dead."
2:21 p.m. - The killer enters the school and began shooting
2:23 p.m. - 911 calls about a shooting at the school being coming in, and Coral Springs Fire personnel are dispatched for an active shooter situation. Peterson calls in to report possible shots fired, and remains near the southeast corner of the building for the duration of the incident.
2:25 p.m. - Peterson orders the school be placed on lockdown. More 911 calls flood in to Coral Springs Police Department dispatch.
2:27 p.m. - Students flee the school and Peterson tells Broward County dispatch to prevent anyone from entering the school.
The killer places his weapon in a stairwell.
In the moments that followed, Peterson tells officers to stay away from the building, and another deputy reports that a parent told him there is a child down. Another deputy reports a gunshot victim with a leg wound near the football field.
2:29 p.m. - A Coral Springs officer meets Peterson outside the building, and two other Broward County deputies prepare to enter a nearby building.
The killer is seen on surveillance on the southwest part of campus, and a victim gives a Broward County officer a description of what the killer was wearing and the type of weapon he had.
Coral Springs PD begins closing nearby streets, but no perimeter has been established yet.
2:32 p.m. - Coral Springs PD approaches the building where the shooting occurred, and along with two Broward County officers, they enter the building and extract a victim.
2:33 p.m. - A perimeter is established. More officers begin to assist in search and evacuation efforts.
Walmart security footage shows the killer enter the store and exit three minutes later, and then walking into a McDonald’s and leaving after less than one minute.
The killer was arrested one hour and 17 minutes after the shooting started.
Aaron Colen
Aaron is a former staff writer for TheBlaze. He resides in Denton, Texas, and is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in journalism and a Master of Education in adult and higher education.
