The term in the title is a military and political term describing the deliberate placement of civilians in or around combat targets to deter an enemy from attacking those targets or to place hostages around and in front of perpetrators as they walk passed armed policeman for protection as they escape.
Linda Cardellini (Samantha Taggart) & John Leguizamo (Dr. Victor Clemente) also worked together on Bloodline (2015) as Meg Rayburn & Ozzy Delvecchio respectively.