Editing SWAT (section)

{{Short description|American law enforcement unit}}
{{Other uses}}
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{{Use American English|date=July 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2021}}
[[File:CBP Office of Field Operations Training with Air and Marine Operations - 43847567720.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[U.S. Customs and Border Protection]] SWAT officers preparing for a [[training exercise]]]]
[[File:FBI Hostage Rescue training from helicopter.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] [[FBI Special Weapons and Tactics Teams|SWAT]] agents [[fast-roping]] from a helicopter during training near [[downtown Los Angeles]]]]
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{{Law enforcement in the United States}}

A '''SWAT''' (''Special Weapons and Tactics'') team is a generic term for a [[police tactical unit]] within the [[United States]], though the term has also been used by multiple other nations.

SWAT units are generally trained, equipped, and deployed to resolve "high-risk situations", often those regular police units are not trained or equipped to handle, such as [[shootout]]s, [[Police standoff|standoffs]], [[Police raid|raids]], [[hostage-taking]]s, and [[terrorism]]. SWAT units are equipped with specialized weapons and equipment not normally issued to regular police units, such as [[automatic firearm]]s, high-caliber [[sniper rifle]]s, [[stun grenade]]s, [[body armor]], [[ballistic shield]]s, [[night-vision device]]s, and [[SWAT vehicle|armored vehicle]]s, among others. SWAT units are often trained in special tactics such as [[close-quarters combat]], [[door breaching]], [[crisis negotiation]], and [[de-escalation]].

The first SWAT units were formed in the 1960s to handle [[riot control]] and violent confrontations with criminals. The number and usage of SWAT units increased in the 1980s during the [[War on Drugs]] and the 1990s following incidents such as the [[North Hollywood shootout]] and [[Columbine High School massacre]], with further increases in the 2000s for [[counterterrorism]] interests in the aftermath of the [[September 11 attacks]]. In the United States by 2005, SWAT teams were deployed 50,000 times every year, almost 80% of the time to serve [[search warrant]]s, most often for [[narcotic]]s. By 2015, the number of annual SWAT deployments had increased to nearly 80,000 times a year.<ref name="swat_week_2015">{{cite web |last1=Kristian |first1=Bonnie |title=The troubling rise of SWAT teams |url=https://theweek.com/articles/531458/troubling-rise-swat-teams |website=The Week |date=January 19, 2015 |publisher=Dennis Publishing Limited 2021 |access-date=19 October 2021 |ref=week_2015}}</ref> Despite their heightened involvement in high-risk scenarios, research on their use of force has shown varied results. A study by professor Jimmy J. Williams and professor David Westall found that there wasn't a significant difference in the frequency of use of force between SWAT and non-SWAT officers when responding to similar situations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Williams |first1=Jimmy |last2=Westall |first2=David |date=October 2003 |title=SWAT and non-SWAT police officers and the use of force |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047235203000515 |journal=Journal of Criminal Justice |volume=31 |issue=5 |pages=469–474 |doi=10.1016/S0047-2352(03)00051-5 |via=Science Direct|url-access=subscription }}</ref>