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'Shots fired' event held

County deputies undergo training

“Shots fired. Shots fired.”

That was the frantic call Wednesday morning about a gunman in the county courthouse.

Butler County deputies quickly mobilized to find the perpetrator, described as a white male, 6 foot, 3 inches tall and wearing tan pants and a blue shirt.

The deputies cornered him in a stairwell of the county courthouse.

Fortunately, the shooter was another deputy enacting a simulation using nonlethal training ammunition.

Taking advantage of a lull in the county court schedule, Sheriff Mike Slupe slotted a two-day active shooter training in the third and fourth floors of the courthouse.

Slupe said the training helps deputies anticipate what could happen in an actual shooting.

“To better prepare the deputies to react to different scenarios in a threat situation,” he said.

Wednesday morning started with a group of four deputies responding to a call about a shooter loose in the building in a rapid response drill.

Instructor Sgt. Harry Callithen supervised the squad, giving them instructions as they went, then debriefing them later.

Callithen said a key point to instill in the deputies is the ability to evaluate a threat.

“Not every situation is a shooting situation,” he said.

Callithen said some scenarios require a tactical hold instead of a rapid response.

During the shooter drill, the deputies clear courtroom 6 before heading to the stairwell.

One deputy is shot in the knee under the scenario. She provides security at the doorway while the other three deputies ascend the stairs.

After an exchange of gunfire, the shooter is hit and apprehended.

During the debriefing, Callithen told the deputies what to do in a real shooting.

“The trail of violence will take you to the person,” he said.

Deputy Matt Setnar, who played the shooter and also is an instructor, told the participants to consider all sides of a room as well as reacting to things as they happen.

“You have to think on your feet,” Setnar said.

While the training was occurring in the courthouse, another four deputies were being trained at the Butler Township police shooting range off Saw Mill Run Road.

The groups switched sites in the afternoon. A new batch of deputies underwent similar training today.

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