WFLA:
LAKELAND, FL (WFLA) – A 2-year-old child was burned by a flash-distraction device when Lakeland Police Department SWAT team members executed a search warrant on a home known for continuous drug activity on Thursday.
According to police, members of the SWAT team executed a high-risk search warrant at 1103 West 9th Street.
Once at the home, SWAT officers knocked and verbally announced that they were executing a search warrant, as per protocol.
Officers entered the home and cleared the room, not seeing anyone inside.
The small room was cluttered with clothing and furniture items, including old mattresses leaning against a wall.
With no one in sight, a less lethal distraction device was deployed by an officer.
Officers used a noise-flash diversion product.
As the officer was backing out of the room, a 2-year-old child, who is believed to have been hiding in the mattresses, began walking toward the device as it was activated.
The officer immediately grabbed the child and took him outside to the SWAT team medic.
The child suffered third-degree burns and was taken to Lakeland Regional Health, then Tampa General Hospital.
There is a very small set of circumstances in which I believe that a military raid is warranted. One such example would be a hostage situation, but even then I prefer to see men employ their wits and negotiate their way to a peaceful resolution. And any team that ever attempts to do something like this should be a professional team who has trained day and night with the other team members in shoot houses for a couple of years.
My own son told me that he spent so much time with his own unit – living with them, eating with them, shooting with them, room clearing with them – that they didn’t even have to speak to each other and they all knew what the other team members were going to do next. His NCO told them all if one of the Marines in a fire team gets into some kind of trouble then the whole team had better be in trouble because the fire team had better not be split up. Ever. If you’re not trained to that level of proficiency, then you shouldn’t be doing this sort of thing – ever, under any circumstances.
Finally, I am a Christian libertarian. I don’t believe in a militaristic police state or SWAT raids or the so-called “war on drugs.” Evidence gathering and taking people into custody isn’t a good enough reason to breach the doors and force your way into property that doesn’t belong to you. Old fashioned police work with detectives is good enough to gather evidence the classic way and also to ascertain whether children or the person of interest is in the domicile, when they come and go, and when is the best time to effect arrest.
This wasn’t it. As for the Lakeland police SWAT team, it’s my hope that you see the toddler every day for the rest of your lives in your mind, and in your dark dreams during sleepless nights. I hope not a day goes by in your miserable lives that you don’t hear the screams of a burning child.
