WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. – Days before alleged gunman Brian Anthony Browning showed up at CrossPointe Community Church in Wayne, the church security team traveled to Peacemakers in Livingston County.
In addition to training law enforcement, Peacemakers offers other levels of preparedness and shooting training for groups and institutions, including churches.
“It’s an awareness class, things that we should be looking for red flags, indicators, that something might not be right,” said instructor Brad McClement.
The CrossPointe security class signed up for didn’t include any gun range training; however, manager Adam Wilson says he can see where some of their training may have made a difference.
“The first initial one was far, generally because we weren’t quite sure how it all played out; once I learned the outcome of the situation, the security guard had lived, had minor injuries, and that security team was totally okay, and there were no casualties I was extremely grateful,” said Adam Wilson of Peacemakers.
Wilson says he was most impressed by the security team’s threat identification, more specifically, “the fact that the aggressor never made it into the church.”
Police have said lives were saved because of the actions of church staff who engaged the shooter and prevented him from entering into the church.