FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT

About The Course

Law Enforcement Training Course

The instructors bring a rare perspective to the class. Each instructor has been involved in a deadly force encounter with an armed attacker. In addition, Detective Russell was shot while attempting to detain a subject and Detective Holt was stabbed trying to apprehend a mentally disturbed individual. These and other experiences give the instructors unparalleled credibility. Their friendships and working relationships span more than twenty-five years. Their interactions provide different perspectives, sometimes in agreement, other times in disagreement.

The instructors utilize never seen before crime scene photographs, videos and radio transmissions of actual police-involved shootings, several they actually investigated.

Law enforcement is dangerous, and understanding a lethal encounter’s potential is imperative to every officer’s chance of surviving.

The instructors will explore the physiological and psychological effects on the human body during and after a deadly force encounter. They will emphasize the importance of mental and physical preparedness. It is important to understand how your body responds when faced with an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm. This information will prepare you when your body goes into a protective mode. This knowledge could mean the difference between survival and death.

The instructors will talk about how physical training, mental imaging, tactical self-talk, combat breathing and centering improve stress inoculation, startle recovery and performance during a deadly force encounter.

Reacting appropriately is critical in a violent encounter. The instructors will talk about reaction times and how to prepare and utilize various techniques, such as Air Force Colonel John Boyd’s OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act).

Even when officers are prepared for deadly force encounters, they may not be prepared for the aftermath, such as internal affairs investigations, hostile media reports, offender threats, civil actions and reactions from family members and fellow officers. The instructors will cover all of this and how to recognize and deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in themselves and their fellow officers.

The instructors will also explore the reasons persons chose law enforcement as a profession. They will discuss the development of codes of conduct that have been refined and passed down for thousands of years and how the codes play a role in officer self-perception and in guiding actions during day-to-day policing. The instructors will discuss why police officers must be willing to be held to a higher standard than the public they serve.

Finally, the class will discuss the police response to active shooter situations, perhaps the most traumatic and chaotic incident an officer will face. Keeping a focused mindset and determining your goals in advance will assist you from being overwhelmed during a traumatic incident.

National Homicide Investigators Association