Knoxville police train for community recovery after mass violence situations

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville police officers trained on responding to mass violence events on Wednesday.

The training wasn't about eliminating threats — but handling the investigation, victims and citywide recovery. Daniel Oates, a retired police chief from Aurora, Colorado, led the training.

He was the chief during the 2012 movie theater shooting, and he said trauma still lingers in the city for years. Twelve people between the ages of six and 51 died in that attack and dozens more were shot when James Holmes allegedly opened fire at a midnight movie showing," NBC reported after the attack.

Oates said that every officer needs to prepare for that kind of aftermath.

"We in government, all of government, have a role to support the community and provide the best possible services as the c