In the early morning hours of March 1, 2026, a busy stretch of Austin’s West Sixth Street turned chaotic when a gunman opened fire outside Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden, one of the city’s most crowded nightlife areas. According to investigators, the suspect, later identified as 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne, drove past the location multiple times before stopping and firing at people gathered outside the bar. He then exited his vehicle and continued shooting with a second weapon. The attack left...

In policing, we have placed a strong focus on training our officers for critical incident response. Officers receive active shooter training, tactical training, and instruction in de-escalation techniques. The reality is that officers today are more prepared for critical incidents than ever before. That does not mean there is not more work to be done, but it is a solid start. There is still a major gap in critical incident response training. Leadership. When we study the failed response at...

Tell me if this sounds familiar.  You make a mistake at work and you cannot stop thinking about it. You replay everything leading up to what happened, the decision you made, and all the ways you should have handled it differently. This has happened to me many times, both in my career and in my life. For years, I ruminated on my mistakes. I would beat myself up and worry constantly that it would happen again. Eventually, I realized why. I expected perfection from myself. If I was not perfect,...