Dutchess County Prepares for Active Shooter Incident

Dutchess County Law Enforcement is preparing for a large scale active shooter training event in Poughkeepsie.

According to the Dutchess County Sheriffs Department officers from throughout the area will be participating in a large scale active shooter training initiative this Thursday, May 12th. The event spearheaded by the Sheriffs department will be held at the at the former Arthur S. May School located on Raymond Avenue in Poughkeepsie. Officials say the training has been ongoing since the late April and aims to improve individual officer tactics and inter agency teamwork through realistic scenario-based training.

“An ‘active shooter incident’ is one in which one or more individuals are seeking to kill and injure as many people as possible in as short a time as possible,” said Captain Gerard Lennon who also serves as President of the Dutchess County Association of Chiefs of Police. “Our goal in this training is to equip as many police officers as possible with the latest tactics to handle any tragedy.”

Also participating in the event is the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department, City of Poughkeepsie Police Department, The New York State Police Department, Dutchess County Law Enforcement Academy, Dutchess County Association of Chiefs of Police and the Arlington Central School District.