Priority Response Team

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

Miami-Dade Police Department’s (MDPD), Priority Response Team (PRT), was formed in the wake of the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. In creating the PRT, MDPD took a proactive approach in providing a response capability to active shooter situations, and critical incidents in Miami-Dade County (MDC). The PRT provides one squad (one sergeant and eight police officers) of highly-trained personnel to every police district within unincorporated MDC, and contracted municipalities during the day shift. During the afternoon shift, PRT converts into a regional response model that provides one squad for the north-end, and one squad for the south-end of MDC. Additionally, PRT delivers services to private and charter schools, which are not provided by the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department. Each school is assigned a primary and secondary PRT officer. The assigned officers provide a direct resource liaison for the school’s administration to MDPD, and also attend monthly threat assessment meetings which are required by Florida Statute. The PRT model starts with training. Before being selected for the team, each officer completes a 40-hour PRT basic training course. Within the 40-hour block, PRT candidates are given instructions and tested in Mass Casualty Attack Training (MCAT), interior tactics, firearms training, casualty care, incident command, and physical skills assessments. Upon selection to the Unit, the officer undergoes an additional 80 hours of in-service training to further develop the officer in the day-to-day responses PRT officers' encounter. Furthermore, PRT developed a training model wherein one week every month, an officer from each squad, and one sergeant, are selected and attend a 40-hour block of training provided by personnel from within the PRT. This equates to 240 hours annually of training per person within the unit.