Two SWAT members suspended after responding to Florida shooting 'without notification', officials say
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Two Florida police officers have been suspended from their SWAT team after reportedly responding to the fatal school shooting in Parkland without permission from their supervisors, officials said.
The two unidentified officers were suspended on Wednesday after officials learned that “the two employees took it upon themselves to respond without notification to the SWAT commander” on February 14, creating “an extreme hazard by way of accountability, responsibility, and liability,” Chief Dexter Williams said in a statement.
Miramar's SWAT team had been training in nearby Coral Springs that morning and had been placed on stand-by after the active-shooter report, but the Broward Sheriff's Office never called for them.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Williams emphasized that two officers were suspended because of their failure to notify the proper personal.
“Let us be clear, the issue was not that they responded, but that they did not advise,” the statement read. “These officers responded to the February 14, 2018 shooting in Parkland, after the shooting was over. They did not advise prior to self-dispatching, during the incident, nor immediately following. They did not advise dispatch, their SWAT leaders or even check-in with the Incident Command in Parkland.”
On February 14, a lone gunman entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and opened fire, killing 17.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The officers will remain on active duty for their other assignments and have been suspended only from their SWAT team.
Miramar police spokeswoman Tania Rues said in an email Wednesday that a third SWAT team member was suspended for violating the department's social media policy.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.