River Training for -Your Department??? - ~ORCEMENT Rbl BULLETIN
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.. - . , river Training For -Your Department??? - ~ORCEMENT rBl BULLETIN OCTOBER 1981. VOLUME 50. NUMBER 10 Contents Train.ing 1 Driver Training for Your Department??? By Lt. James J. Barron and Sgt. Steven L. Aurilio Communications 8 Small Department Communications for Small Dollar$ By Jerry W. Lowe Train.ing 11 Designing a Training Response to Stress By John C. LeDoux and Henry H. McCaslin, Jr. Firearms 16 The Sighting Shadow Box By Robert W. Harmon Arson 19 New York State Gears Up to Fight Arson By Francis A. McGarry The Legal Digest 24 Conspiracy and the Defense of Feigned Acquiescence By Jerome O. Campane 32 Wanted By the FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation Published by the Office of Congressional and United States Department of Justice Public AffairS. The Cover: Driver Roger S Young Washington, D.C. 20535 training for police ASSistant Director officers can reduce William H. Webster, Director Editor-Thomas J Deakin accidents and ASSistant Editor- Kathryn E. Sulewski minimize revenue Art Director-Kevin Mulholland The Attorney General has delermlned Ihal Ihe publica lion J. loss of 01 thiS periodical IS necessary In the transaction of the Water/ Editor- Karen McCarron Production Manager-Jeffery L. Summers departments. See public bUSiness reqUired by law 01 Ihe Deparlmenl 01 article p. 1. Jusllce Use 01 lunds lor prlnllng Ih,s periodical has been approved by Ihe Dlreclor 01 Ihe Office 01 Managemenl and Budgel Ihrough Oecember 28. 1983 ISSN 0014-5688 USPS 383-310 Officer H. Charger was moving Frank Sola pulled out of his drive• along at a substantial speed. With a way at 20 Bismark Street, with his wife year in the department, he was young, and three kids in the car. He headed and confident, and believed he could han• down the street, with the windows T. STEVEN L. AURILIO dle anything that came along. He was rolled up, radio on, and kids fussing in responding to a call about a disturb• the rear seat. A moving van at the ance in a bar. The last radio message corner blocked the view to the south, indicated that his partner in the next but the light was clearly green. He got beat had just arrived at the scene. into the intersection just in time to Officer Charger flipped on the red meet a 4,000-pound police car being lights and stepped on the gas. He had piloted at 70 m.p.h. The impact killed to cover his partner! And, after all, the Sola, seriously injured his wife, and left call was in his beat and he could han• one of his kids with permanent brain dle his own beat. The speedometer damage. Officer Charger lost a few crept past 60, even though it was a 35 teeth, and the police car was totaled. m.p.h. zone, but the traffic was light. Two years later the gavel sound• Up ahead, the Signal on Bismark Street ed. The jury awarded Irene Sola $1.2 had just turned red. million in general damages. The sum might compensate for the expenses and perhaps care for her brain-dam• aged son. But, she still misses Frank. October 1981 I 1 What are the chances of a similar Driver training can and does re• mishap occurring in your department? duce accidents. The very purpose of 4 As a police administrator, you might "A trained police training is to improve the worker by have already pondered such an epi• officer operates his optimizing his job skills and knowledge, sode. You may have even considered pOlice vehicle with increasing his confidence and profi• instituting a police driver training pro• competence and he ciency, and developing efficient and / gram and silently made a mental note safe work habits. Good, learned work that you would start on a program arrives at his habits are reinforced by a scheduled t someday soon. Then, again, you may destination by skill." system of continuous refresher training 1 be an administrator who prefers to and by supervisory evaluation of the handle situations as they arise, em• worker's performance on a day-to-day ploying a minimal amount of planning. basis. Soon, the worker exercises Or perhaps you are an administrator good work habits naturally, with mini• who hopes that "it won 't happen mal physical or mental effort, and the here." You may believe that a driver likelihood of job error is significantly training program is beyond the needs reduced. and means of your department, since What happened to Officer Charger many small and midsized agencies is not uncommon. It has happened have limited resources and manpower. before; unfortunately, it will happen If so, then this article is aimed at you . again. What are the chances of it hap• It is not our intention to give a pening in your agency? Think of your detailed description of a driver training newest recruit. He's young, eager, and course. The details are for you to de• ambitious, as was Officer Charger. Are cide and to tailor to your agency's you satisfied with your department's structure and needs. Our intention is, effort to train this officer to operate his however, to convince you to develop or vehicle safely? Are you confident of his participate in a police driver training ability? If he makes a mistake, can you program and to show you how to do it afford it? Can he or his family? Mis• efficiently and economically. We real• takes with police vehicles can be ize the problems administrators face in costly. justifying new programs and maintain• A trained police officer operates ing current ones, while having to work his police vehicle with competence and within a tight budget. Well , we believe he arrives at his destination by skill. An this needed training can be accom• untrained police officer, on the other plished by using the resources already hand, arrives at his destination by luck. available. Perhaps you are not con• That luck sometimes runs out. It did for vinced you need or even want such a young Officer Charger. As a matter of program. Well , before looking at the fact, what happened to Officer Charger " how to do it," let's take a look at the is not necessarily a misfortune tha " why do it?" occurs only to new recruits. It can and Driver training, as with any train• . does happen to veteran officers who ing, is a product of sound planning; Helmets and aircraft·type harnesses are have, over the years, developed un• planning is a function of good leader• necessary equipment in any driver training safe driving habits. These officers are program. ship. Without training, proper perform• especially in need of training in order to ance is left to the "trial and error" the training spotlight, which leads us to break unsafe habits and to instill new method of learning, which is a costly an interesting paradox. It would seem and safe driving skills. and inefficient practice. An untrained that the activity which an officer per• police officer is an unprepared police forms most frequently and which has a officer. It's the supervisor's responsibil• greater chance for error receives the ity to insure that he gets the training to least amount of training attention. To perform his job and to accomplish the realize the disparity, one need only goals of the organization. compare the amount of time a police Driver training is an area that has, officer spends operating his police ve• for the most part, been overlooked by hicle as opposed to using his sidearm police administrators. Other concerns, or shotgun, negotiating with a hostage such as weapons training, S.W.A.T., taker, or rappeling off a tall building. and hostage negotiations, have held 2 I FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Still not convinced? Okay, let's dozen cops and instructors drinking look at the "dollars and cents" of it all. coffee and burning time. This was ac• Money is the most obvious reason for complished with one car, one instruc• improving a police officer's driving abili• tor, and two students at a time, on a ty. It costs money to replace or repair a regular basis. Do it once a week, once damaged police vehicle; it costs mon• a month, whatever your manpower al• ey to pay for the damage to the other location allows. The important thing is driver's car or property; it costs money to get the people trained, then re• to pay for officer's wages should he be trained at specified periods. The first injured and unable to work; it costs step is the hardest-making the deci• money to replace the injured officer; it sion to do it. The program will flow from costs money to investigate the acci• there; the officers love it. dent; it costs money to fight law suits; it What is a police driver training costs money for insurance premiums; it program like? It can include many top• costs money to the individual officer ics. For example, inform the student of who may find himself being held per• the laws and rules that relate to emer• sonally liable. gency driving. Let him know your State How about time? An officer off requirements and restrictions. Let him duty because of a job-incurred injury is know your departmental pursuit policy, Lieutenant Barron not available. Manpower is depleted. If driving policy, or whatever. Also, let an officer manages to escape injury him know what happens to those who after being involved in an on-duty acci• forget. Negative strokes also get atten• dent, time is still lost.