Orlando police leaders look back on nightclub tragedy
Officers laud community’s response
Five years after a gunman stormed into the Pulse nightclub and killed 49 people, Orlando police leaders who responded to the massacre say it remains the worst tragedy the department has responded to — but was followed by an “unbelievable” display of community resolve.
“It makes us very proud to serve a community that was so giving, so caring and so mindful of the fact that we needed to put the needs of others before ours,” Chief Orlando Rolón said.
During a press conference at police headquarters Wednesday, Rolón and his four deputy chiefs reflected on how the agency’s policies have changed since the June 12, 2016, mass shooting at the LGBTQ+ nightclub. All officers, not just patrol units, now keep rifles in their cars, as well as active shooter kits that include a helmet and vest, Deputy Chief Eric Smith said.
“I think this changed all our officers’ mindsets,” Smith said. “You know that now somebody may come there intent on killing everybody there and kill you — so you have to be prepared.”
Rolón defended the response of the first Orlando police officer on the scene at Pulse, Officer Adam Gruler, who has been criticized for not pursuing the gunman inside the club after firing at him, but said the department has changed its training to better handle active shootings.
“I think this has made all of us better, and from every situation, there’s always an opportunity to make adjustments to better respond to a tragedy like this,” the chief said.
The Pulse massacre also showed the department how important it was to build connections with members of different communities, Deputy Chief James Young said.
Young, an openly gay officer, said he worked for many years as an off-duty officer at Pulse before
responding to the shooting. He knew some of the victims who perished and remains friends with many survivors.
“I always say it was the longest shift of my life because that shift to this day, five years later, has not ended,” Young said.
The community’s response after the tragedy was “amazing,” he said.
“I’ve never seen so many rainbow flags in the world in my life,” Young said. “Every community around the world came together to pray for the victims, but also the survivors, their families. The City of Orlando ... putting together the centers so that victims could continue to get help to this day [was] just unbelievable.”
Deputy Chief Chad Ochiuzzo recalled seeing survivors hug and thank SWAT officers who rescued them from Pulse.
“There was a lot of people that put their lives on the line that night,” he said. “And there’s a lot of people that lost a lot that night. Just being able to see them come together and kind of embrace each other — I think it was probably one of the nicest things I’ve seen.”
Rolón said it was “disheartening” to see some LGBTQ+ Pride parades around the country banning uniformed police in an effort to create safer spaces for transgender people and communities of color who have historically faced excessive force. Pride marches originate from a 1969 uprising against police harassment in New York City.
“I hope that communities like ours don’t follow suit because during the times of greater need, our officers are willing to respond and go through hell and back to provide care and safety for anyone in need — regardless of what they look like, regardless of what they represent,” the chief said. “... I can only hope that in the coming years — because it’ll take some time to heal — we’ll go back to what our nation is best known for, which is a nation of one [out] of many.”