Even now that his daughter is in her 20s, Jeffrey Hawkins still springs a familiar quiz on her when the two are out together in a restaurant.

“We’ll be chatting about this or that,” said Hawkins, “and then I’ll stop. I’ll say, ‘OK, what’s your plan?’ And she’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. She’ll say, ‘Dad there are three exits… One behind you. One to our left, and one through the kitchen.’ “

” ‘OK, and what if that doesn’t work? What would you do?’ “

” ‘I would take this chair, throw it through the window and run.'”

It’s not about being paranoid, said Hawkins, a public safety and security industry veteran. It is about realizing that “things can happen,” even in public places once deemed safe.

It was hard to avoid feeling at least a little insecure in public in the first day or two after the Century Aurora 16 shooting.

Fear is natural, said Hawkins, who trained at the Chicago Police Academy, with the FBI, and in Israel, where in some areas people live with a near-constant threat of violence. Hawkins is now an American Military University instructor based in the Washington, D.C., area and leads public security training seminars nationwide.

“We don’t want people to be afraid to go to a movie theater or church,” said Hawkins, who was compelled after the Century Aurora 16 shooting to pen an article preaching the need for tougher public security measures — like alarming movie theater exit doors.

But “situational awareness” means using real-life events such as this as training tools. His own kids have gone through enough of these exercises that they now possess a sixth sense whenever they’re in public. They:

• Know where the exits are.

• Can determine from which direction an actual threat is coming, whether it’s a fire, a tornado or a person coming through the door with a gun.

• And then determine, what is my closest point of exit away from that threat and how fast can I move there?

“If you train your mind,” Hawkins said, “you do these mental rehearsals over and over again. Like when you go into a restaurant or shopping mall, just be aware of who’s around and what’s their tone of voice.”

But in public, where does visual observation bump up against racial or social profiling?

“We all know what’s normal,” Hawkins said. “Argumentative people, people raising their voices… We all know what a normal argument sounds like. You (remain) aware of a situation and even though you’re going about your business, you still keep an ear or eye toward what’s going on…”

Complacency, Hawkins said, is a challenge. One common thread among many of the crime victims he has interviewed:

“They would always tell me, ‘I thought something was wrong’ ” but failed to act on that suspicion.

In Aurora, the many stories of heroism, and of individuals going above and beyond the call of duty, also compel one to ask: How should I act when confronted with violence in public? When should a person be the hero?

Opinions vary.

“It is never appropriate to ‘be a hero’ when faced with a tragic event like the recent shooting,” JT Lichtfuss said via e-mail. The Wisconsin-based business consultant draws on military and martial arts training when advising his clients.

“When a tragedy such as the theater shooting occurs, you have a responsibility to yourself and the individuals that you are with,” he added. “You should immediately contact 911 and try to find a safe and secure location. You should never try to be ‘be a hero.'”

One thing a civilian can do is prepare to be a good crime witness by noting as many details and suspect descriptors as possible.

But Jeanne Assam respectfully disagrees with the idea that public responsibility stops there.

In 2007, Assam was the volunteer security guard at New Life Church in Colorado Springs who halted a shooting rampage by Matthew Murray. Now living in Denver, Assam is a former police and corrections officer who trained in criminal justice. She wrote a book, “God, the Gunman and Me,” and continues to correspond with people about her experience through her blog: jeanneassam.wordpress.com.

“How I see it is, if you’re out in public and you see a crime happening of any kind, really, (stepping in) is just the right thing to do, rather than sit back and do nothing,” Assam said. “It’s not about being a hero, it’s about doing the right thing, whether you’re a cop or not.”

But that assertion comes with a caveat.

“You have to know in the back of your mind that you could get hurt or you could even get killed,” Assam said, noting that in Colorado, it’s now becoming rare to meet someone without a connection to one of the state’s high-profile shooting incidents.

“It’s not about being a hero,” she concluded. “It’s about doing the right thing. Either you have it in you or you don’t.”

Elana Ashanti Jefferson: 303-954-1957, ejefferson@denverpost.com or twitter.com/elanaashanti

Recognizing suspicious activity

Civilians can stop crime and save lives. How? The Denver Police Department encourages citizens to be aware of their surroundings and to report all suspicious activity by calling 911, the non-emergency number (720-913-2000), or visiting a neighborhood precinct. Here is a list of indicators that point to suspicious behavior or even possible terrorist activity:

Business patrons or individuals who carry large amounts of cash.

Business patrons or individuals who make unusual rentals or purchase large amounts of a chemical substance — particularly poisonous, flammable, or explosive substances.

Unusual thefts of chemicals or explosive substances.

Unusual thefts of weapons or vehicles, including planes or boats.

Business patrons or individuals who make unusual inquiries about public utilities, large public gatherings, transportation centers, or governmental buildings.

Anyone making requests for information, particularly about security or procedures for high-risk buildings or events listed above.

Anyone attempting to appear “normal” in their behavior, such as portraying themselves as a student or tourist.

Any person carrying identity documents that are issued using various names.

Source: Denver Police Department