Active killers continue to attack communities across America and the world. No single person, group, facility, school, business, or church is immune from active killer violence. Countless attacks are carried out by persons armed with all manner of weapons. Guns in a person’s hands focused on creating chaos, injuries, and even death continue. However, acts of violence and terror continue. Strangers are attacked by suspects armed with vehicles, explosives, knives, and, at times, firearms. Studies by researchers and authors such as Katherine Schweit, Kevin T. Doss, and C. David Shepherd continues to pursue techniques on how to stop an active killer. This page will focus on not only the definition of an Active Killer but individual examples of the terror that continues to strike America and the world we live in.
What is an Active Killer? A variety of definitions exist both in personal opinion shared across social media and published research. Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Dave Grossman acknowledges that there is a distinct difference between an active killer and an active shooter( Moloney, 2017). In many instances, the suspect unleashing his or her attack against their victims is the active killer. The active shooter can be anyone who is actively seeking the opportunity to end the violence associated with the attack. Employees caught in an attack can defend against an active killer. Law enforcement officers historically do not arrive for 8 to 10 minutes following notification of an active killer attack (FBI, 2018). Yet, the legally armed citizen or off-duty officer in the right place both mentally and physically can bring the killing to a stop.