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JANUARY 1985. VOLUME 54. NUMBER 1 Contents Crime Problems 1 Police in a Violent Society By Dr. John G. Stratton, Dr. John R. Snibbe, and Kenneth Bayless Training 8 Professors of the Street: Police Mentors By M. Michael Fagan and Kenneth Ayers, Jr. Identification 14 Interstate Identification Index By Emmet A. Rathbun Invest~ative Aids 18 Criminal Codes and Ciphers-What do They Mean? By Jacqueline Taschner and Arthur R. Eberhart The Legal D~est 23 Finetuning Miranda Policies By Charles E. Riley, III 32 Wanted by the FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation Published by the Office of United States Department of Justice Congressional and Public Affairs, The Cover: Confron· Washington, DC 20535 William M. Baker, Assistant Director tations with irrational, violent individuals WIlliam H. Webster, Director Editor- Thomas J. Deakin are day-to-day Assistant Editor- Kathryn E. Sulewski occurrences which Mulholland The Attorney General has determined that the Art Director- Kevin J. threaten the safety publication of this periodical is necessary in the Writer/Editor- Karen McCarron of police officers transaction of the public business required by law Production Manager-Jeffrey L. Summers everywhere. (Staged of the Department of Justice. Use of funds for Reprints- Regena E. Archey training photo.) See printing this periodical has been approved by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget article p. 1. through June 6, 1988. ISSN 0014- 5688 USPS 383-310 "The more we understand violence-prone people and their [ problems, the more we can help pollee officers humanely manage this significant social problem." Polies in, Violent Society Misunderstandings or overactions or other sources. The police view psy• By by psychologists and others about the chologists as people with their heads JOHN G. STRAITON, Ph.D police and their actions can occur for in clouds viewing the world from ivory Director many reasons. Biases, negative atti• towers, while the police work with Psychological Services their feet on the ground, dealing with tudes, and distorted views are often JOHN R. SNIBBE, Ph.D. fueled by negative and slanted news divergent realities in their complex and fictional portrayals of the police world. Yet, there are some similarities Clinical Psychologist and their behavior. Yet, it is very easy which must be recognized. and to see how these misconceptions Psychologists and the police LT. KENNETH BAYLESS occur. share a common "idealistic" view of Advanced Training Officer The police experience, firsthand, society. Both strive to make society Los Angeles County Sheriff's the violence that mental he.alth pro• well by working with a small percent• Department fessionals learn about through books age of its ill or problem members. And Los Angeles, CA ___________________ _________________ January 1985 /1 while the methods used differ, the cial police unit routinely performing OJ same basic motivation remains-a their duties. Yet, in almost every epi• desire to help people. sode, numerous people were killed Both professions are basically and/or injured by this unit. From this, governed by similar ethical and social the public believed that S.w.A.T. offi• responsibilities. People, in their time cers in their community would do the of need, turn to each profession same things they have seen done on seeking help. According to respective television. "codes of ethics" and "social respon• The community reaction, although sibilies," each provides aid and serv• warranted by TV experience, is tragic, Dr. Stratton ice to those in need. It is this "service since actual statistics do not concur ethic" that brings us to our third com• with what is portrayed on television. monality-frustration, the frustration For example, from 1973 to 1982, the shared in trying to perform our re• Los Angeles County Sheriff's Depart• spective jobs. Therefore, while. we ment deployed its Special Weapons may appear, at times, as being on Team 591 times. These incidents are "opposite sides of the fence," we are often the most dangerous and difficult actually partners in an ever-increasing assignments given to law enforce• effort to make society and the world a ment. Weapons were fired on only 11 better place for all of us. occasions (a mere 1.8 percent of all A common perception of the role deployments), 5 people (.08 percent) of police in society is that of a three• died, 3 people (.05 percent) were ring circus complete with screaming wounded, and 3 shootings resulted in sirens, unholstered guns, and violent no injuries. These figures reveal that action. Most often highlighted in the modern S.w.A.T. teams belie the media and fictional accounts of police common media image and are actual• work and the news are the shocking, ly dedicated peace officers with ex• violent, and often tragic occurrences ceptional discipline. that police encounter daily. The dra• The concept of special weapons matic focus is invariably on officer teams is valuable in Los Angeles Dr. Snibbe shootings, serious and notorious County and a safety to the communi• criminal cases, and other events that ties, law enforcement personnel, and sell newspapers or raise audience rat• the suspects. No officer or innocent ings. person had been killed during 591 de• Many members of society expect ployments. In the 54 hostage situa• the police to act in the way they are tions, only 1 victim was killed by the portrayed in the media. Although it is suspect after S.w.A.T. was deployed; true that many situations require swift all other victims were rescued by the and dramatic action, the public be• efforts of this team and hostage nego• lieves basically that this is the sum tiators. Less than 2 percent of all de• and substance of police work. When ployments involved shooting situa• such things as S.W.A.T. teams are tions, and less than 1 percent of all considered, it is easy to see how deployments involved the death of a views can be slanted by the media. suspect. Only 3 people were injured, For example, in the late 1970's, a and these deployments resulted in the popular dramatic T.V. series was enti• safe arrest of 937 dangerous felons. tled S.w.A.T., which presented a spe• In other incidents, the S.w.A.T. de• 2 I FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin ployments furnished sufficient time irrational violence is neither the cause and safety to allow for nonviolent, tac• nor the cure for societal ills. As gov• tical alternatives, such as hostage ne• ernmental budgets continue to dwin• gotiations and psychological emergen• dle, more hospital beds are closed to cy teams. the mentally ill, dangerous criminals When regular, routine police as• are released earlier from jails and signments in the field are considered, prisons because of overcrowding, and the statistics are even more startling. the use of dangerous drugs increases, There are an estimated 400,000 the extent of criminal activity becomes police officers in the United States,' unpredictable. Lieutenant Bayless and if each one works approximately To the citizens of every communi• 250 days (a 5-day week for 50 weeks ty, the police represent the last line of a year), they would be working 100 defense when it comes to issues of million days, or shifts, per year. If potential violence. When someone is during an 8-hour shift, the police have being assaulted, robbed, raped, or is an estimated 10 interactions with otherwise the victim of a violent crime, people each day, whether it be traffic there is only one place to turn-the stops, providing assistance, family dis• police. And when the call for help is turbances, pursuits, dealing with the made, there is no one else to handle mentally ill, or those under the influ• the policeman's job if he fails to per• ence of drugs, there would be 1 billion form his task. Consequently, the po• people contacts per year. In those 1 liceman has an obligation to "con• billion contacts, approximately 300 front " and "handle to conclusion, " no people are killed by the police each matter what form of crime or violence year.2 he may encounter. We live in a violent society and we employ police and give them The policeman's perception of weapons to use deadly force for ev• danger in these situations and his eryone's safety. It is shocking to real• ability to handle the situation accord• ize that in 1980, handguns killed 8 ing to the law, department policy, and people in Great Britain, 24 people in training will obviously play a major Sheriff Sherman Block Switzerland, 8 people in Canada, 18 role in the outcome of such incidents. people in Sweden, 23 people in Israel, These factors become the "tools of 4 people in Austria, and 11 ,522 his trade. " people in the United States.3 Our country has 480 times more people Law Enforcement and Use of Force killed by handguns than any other Polley country mentioned.4 Those in law en• The policy on the use of force forcement are attempting to do what and firearms in the Los Angeles they can to reduce the level of vio• County Sheriff's Department, as in lence. Unfortunately, they can't do it most law enforcement agencies, is alone. The public, schools, churches, very simple. In essence, the policy courts, mental health experts, politi• prohibits the use of deadly force cians, and the media share responsi• except in cases where someone's life bility for what is happening in our soci• is in immediate danger. This means ety today. they do not shoot misdemeanants, or The police officer who stands even fleeing felons, unless the " im• alone in the street facing the reality of mediate threat to life" criterion is met.

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