As many of you know, I have a background in law enforcement, and am currently serving as a Police Chaplain.
Our Police Department has a "Citizen's Police Academy" available for people who might be interested in a career in law enforcement, or who might want to serve as volunteers or whatever.
I figured "what the heck", and signed up for the "Citizens' Police Academy", because it seemed like a good way to quickly get to know the policies and procedures of the Department, and get a feel for how they operate.
I have to say, I was really impressed with the professionalism AND the ... trying to think of a word to describe ... the way that it is CONSTANTLY stressed that they want their officers to deal with the public as PEOPLE! What a concept.
From the Chief down to the Lieutenant in charge of the Academy, in scenario after scenario, I would hear the coaching "Talk to them like they're PEOPLE!"
Now, let's be clear -- this in NO WAY implies that the Department Personnel do not THINK that the "people" are "people" -- it's a constant reminder to the officers that they ARE, indeed, dealing with "people", and not just "suspects" or "victims" or "actors" or "perps" or "unknown subjects".
In one of the scenarios, I was teamed up with 3 other people in a "dynamic entry" situation, and there was a guy playing the part of a drunk sitting in the room, holding a cane, with a dead dog (toy stuffed dog) by his side. He was crying and yelling, and my "teammates" began yelling back at him demanding he put his hands up, drop the cane, etc.... I have to admit I got caught up in it a bit myself, but I heard the Lieutenant behind me calling "Talk to him like a person!" I had to outshout my "partners", and ask them to hold up while I "talked to him like a person", and he told me that the man who shot his dog was in the next room, threatening to kill any cops that responded*. Now, again, this was just a training scenario, but it really brought home to me the fact that it's so easy to get caught up in seeing somebody as a "suspect" just because they're drunk or homeless or whatever, when they are, indeed, in need of Police services.
It even made me look back at some of my experiences many years ago, and I wish I had had somebody hammering into my head "talk to them like they're people".
Because, in fact, they really are!
*as part of the exercise, we did move into the next room, and had a shootout with the guy who had been promising to kill a cop.
Our Police Department has a "Citizen's Police Academy" available for people who might be interested in a career in law enforcement, or who might want to serve as volunteers or whatever.
I figured "what the heck", and signed up for the "Citizens' Police Academy", because it seemed like a good way to quickly get to know the policies and procedures of the Department, and get a feel for how they operate.
I have to say, I was really impressed with the professionalism AND the ... trying to think of a word to describe ... the way that it is CONSTANTLY stressed that they want their officers to deal with the public as PEOPLE! What a concept.
From the Chief down to the Lieutenant in charge of the Academy, in scenario after scenario, I would hear the coaching "Talk to them like they're PEOPLE!"
Now, let's be clear -- this in NO WAY implies that the Department Personnel do not THINK that the "people" are "people" -- it's a constant reminder to the officers that they ARE, indeed, dealing with "people", and not just "suspects" or "victims" or "actors" or "perps" or "unknown subjects".
In one of the scenarios, I was teamed up with 3 other people in a "dynamic entry" situation, and there was a guy playing the part of a drunk sitting in the room, holding a cane, with a dead dog (toy stuffed dog) by his side. He was crying and yelling, and my "teammates" began yelling back at him demanding he put his hands up, drop the cane, etc.... I have to admit I got caught up in it a bit myself, but I heard the Lieutenant behind me calling "Talk to him like a person!" I had to outshout my "partners", and ask them to hold up while I "talked to him like a person", and he told me that the man who shot his dog was in the next room, threatening to kill any cops that responded*. Now, again, this was just a training scenario, but it really brought home to me the fact that it's so easy to get caught up in seeing somebody as a "suspect" just because they're drunk or homeless or whatever, when they are, indeed, in need of Police services.
It even made me look back at some of my experiences many years ago, and I wish I had had somebody hammering into my head "talk to them like they're people".
Because, in fact, they really are!
*as part of the exercise, we did move into the next room, and had a shootout with the guy who had been promising to kill a cop.
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