(C) Minnesota Reformer This story was originally published by Minnesota Reformer and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . There’s a more effective way to prevent mass shootings • Minnesota Reformer [1] ['Jameson Ritter', 'Chuck Johnson', 'Donovan Diego', 'Joe Kyle', 'More From Author', 'September', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline'] Date: 2025-09-16 In the days since the mass shooting at the Church of Annunciation in Minneapolis, a familiar refrain has echoed across our community: Do something. It is an honest plea born of grief, fear and anger. But too often, “do something” means doing the same things — vigils, task forces, hardened doors, or more drills — while the conditions that enable targeted violence remain unchanged. If we want different results, we must embrace a different first principle: prevention. Not in the abstract, but in the concrete work of identifying and managing risk before violence occurs. That’s what Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management — BTAM — is designed to do. What research shows Decades of investigations by the FBI, U.S. Secret Service and independent researchers demonstrate that attackers almost always follow what’s called a pathway to violence. Rarely do they just snap. Instead, they progress through stages: grievances that harden; fixation on a person or institution; detailed planning; and acquisition of weapons or means. Along that path, they leak warning behaviors — threats, menacing communications, stalking or drastic changes in mood and function. The warning signs are there. The problem is that they are noticed in isolation. A teacher sees one behavior. A coach hears a troubling comment. A relative spots an alarming post. Each by itself might not seem urgent. But without a structure to connect the dots, opportunities for prevention are lost. How BTAM works BTAM creates that structure. A local team — composed of educators, mental health professionals, law enforcement when needed, and community or faith leaders — meets regularly, receives referrals, evaluates behaviors of concern, and develops proportionate interventions. The aim is not punishment or profiling. It is problem-solving: stabilizing someone in crisis; addressing grievances; reducing access to means; and providing treatment or monitoring. In many cases, intervention involves support and services, not arrests. In the smaller number of high-risk cases, teams coordinate layered safety plans and law-enforcement engagement. The consistent focus is on behavior and risk, not identity or ideology. Why Minnesota should act Minnesota already has strong schools, health systems and faith communities. We should be building BTAM teams that tie those assets together. Here’s what “doing what works” could look like: – Training and awareness so educators, employers, clergy and frontline staff can spot concerning behaviors and know where to refer them. – Multidisciplinary teams in schools, workplaces and communities that meet routinely, share a common framework and coordinate across jurisdictions. – Accessible mental health services to ensure that referrals can result in real help, not just documentation. – Measurement and transparency through tracking of referrals, interventions and outcomes to build trust and improve performance. – Practice and rehearsal so teams can act decisively when risk escalates. Addressing concerns Some worry that threat assessment could stigmatize people or chill free expression. Done poorly, it could. Done correctly, it is fair, ethical and transparent. Good teams focus only on observable behaviors, use proportionate responses, respect privacy and audit themselves for bias. They explain their mission clearly: help first, safety always. Moving forward Minnesotans will continue to debate firearms policy, criminal statutes and security hardware. Those conversations are valid, but they cannot substitute for prevention. Hardened doors and “run, hide, fight” drills may reduce casualties in the moment, but they do not prevent the moment from arriving. BTAM offers something better: a chance to change the outcome before lives are lost. It requires effort, training and coordination — but it works. We can keep doing something and end up with the same thing, or we can roll up our sleeves and do what actually makes a difference. Let’s connect the dots before tragedy connects them for us. Let’s equip the adults closest to the warning signs. Let’s build BTAM teams where Minnesotans learn, worship and work. The next safer day in Minnesota will not be an accident. It will be the product of communities choosing prevention on purpose — together. 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