FORSYTH, Ga. — It's a competition to see which SWAT unit in the Peach State is the best. From shooting skills to tactical techniques, this specialized agency let their expertise show on the course.
This was the second annual Georgia Tactical Officer Association's (GTOA) SWAT games. 13 SWAT teams that included a sniper, four members, and an alternate. Matt McClung is the vice president of GTOA and a police officer with the city of Monroe in Walton County, Georgia. He says the SWAT games is to see their performance in worst-case scenarios.
"They have to be intimately familiar with it just like any type of job that you have to become a master at, they have to master the skill, not just to be good at the skills," McClung said.
According to the Georgia Department of Public Safety, each unit has a Crisis Negotiation Team. They know how to handle individuals in emotionally charged situations. He says when SWAT is involved, people shouldn't worry.
Division director Bruce Stanford with the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) says there are benefits to the teams training and competing.
"In addition to the teambuilding, it will identify areas where they may have shortcomings in their training programs. They can take that knowledge and go back and build training regimens to improve in the areas where they feel like they need improvement," Stanford said.
SWAT teams typically go through more than 80 hours of training to become SWAT officers. They're often called to arrest suspects and conduct search warrants. The Macon-Bibb County SWAT unit participated in the games. McClung says units are also trained on how to deescalate tense situations.
"I'd just like to point out that they don't train to actually hurt the individuals. They train to stop the situation and there's a far greater chance that the situation will be resolved peacefully when SWAT gets involved because of the different special weapons and tactics that they have and tools they have versus a basic patrol officer," McClung said.
But there can only be one winner and will bragging rights of being the best at the GTOA SWAT games.