Originally Posted by
jnc36rcpd
Surround and callout would have depended upon the suspect being rational and the cooperation of building residents, both frail reeds to hang tactical success on. If the bad guy become aware of the police, he may immediately attempt to break containment, take hostages (whether real, imaginary, or himself), or open fire. All of this may happen with residents still in adjacent rooms, stairwells, or hallways. If other residents are sympathetic to the target, they may assault or interfere with containment and entry personnel, requiring more officers and endangering everyone.
One attorney who sues police departments suggested waiting in the lobby of the apartment building pretending to read a newspaper so the police could scoop up the bad guy. While that frequently works for Danny and Baez on "Blue Bloods", it has significant risks and problems in the real world. If the search warrant was for evidence, it may be back in the apartment. If it was for the suspect, he may hunker down in the apartment for an indefinite amount of time. After all, this is a murder suspect, not a narcotics trafficker who has to leave to conduct business. If we take learned counsel's suggestions literally, how many cops reading newspapers would be have pretending to read newspapers in the lobby? For how many days? Do they trade sections of the paper or should we have tomorrow's edition dropped off to them?
SWAT could have announced more times before making entry, but with the suspect directly inside the room, I doubt it would have made a difference. The decedent still would have awakened and likely raised his gun.
I suspect, in circumstances like this, knock and announce might be the least bad option. If he goes barricade or takes hostages, so be it.