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Departments > Police > Patrol > Tactical Response
It has been well established that the presence of a highly trained, highly skilled, police tactical unit has been shown to substantially reduce the risk of injury and loss of life to citizens, police officers, and suspects when called upon to assist in the resolution of critical incidents. It is also known that when a well-managed team response is used to address a critical incident the usual result is a successful resolution.
The Oak Lawn Police Department has supported a Tactical Response Team since the mid 1980’s. Based on the SWAT Team model the TRT is called upon to resolve situations that are highly volatile because of the extensive training they have received and the amount of time they have spent practicing the specialized tactics. The mission of the TRT is to provide a professional approach to these high-risk incidents making every reasonable effort to resolve them peaceably. These include, but are not limited to high-risk search or arrest warrants, armed and barricaded suspects, and hostage situations.
A secondary responsibility of the TRT is to provide a wide range of police services, as determined by command personnel, in furtherance of the departmental goals and objectives. An example of one such service is providing training to other field personnel.
The TRT reports to the Chief of Detectives. It is currently made up 10 members, 1 Sgt and 9 patrol officers. Membership on the Team is an extra duty in addition to their regular assignment. When an opening occurs on the Team for a new member applications are accepted from all sworn department personnel regardless of their assignment. Officers accepted on the Team complete a 40-hour course of instruction in the basic concepts of Tactical Response Team operations. After completing the basic training officers regularly attend advanced training courses and seminars. Several Team members hold instructor certificates. The Team trains twice per month practicing the skills that would be needed on an actual call out.
The TRT has a team membership with the National Tactical Officers Association, and the officers are all members of the Illinois Tactical Officers Association. Both organizations provide resources and training to police officers involved in tactical operations. The Team has had members attend training conducted by officers assigned to similar teams from the Illinois State Police, Northern Illinois Police Alarm System, LAPD, Houston PD, Seattle PD, ATF, FBI, and Singleton International.
The Team motto is, Semper Paratus – Always Prepared. All Team members are issued special uniforms and equipment in order to carry out their assigned operations. Each Team member is issued a pager so they can be reached during their off duty hours if a need should arise. The Team also maintains additional specialized equipment to do its job.
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