PoliceLink

Free ceu-approved Webinar in Handwriting Analysis

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:16:24 -0800

Police test tips

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:31:15 -0800

THE TEN DEADLY ERRORS

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:16:30 -0800

Police Motorcycle Escort Procedures

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:25:11 -0800

Safe Stops

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:23:45 -0800

POLICE MOTORCYCLE TRAINING

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:21:59 -0800

FEMA Mission

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:57:34 -0800

The International Association of Chiefs of Police

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:55:41 -0800

http://www.iir.com/global/products/minimum_criminal_intel_training_standards.pdf

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:54:29 -0800

Welcome to the G.R.E.A.T.

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:52:13 -0800

National Sheriffs’ Association

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:50:12 -0800

Rapid Response Training

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:47:10 -0800

Thanksgiving In Spite Of

Chaplain Bill Wolfe — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:36:00 -0800

Hello, and welcome once again to the November edition of the Chaplain’s Corner. What a month this past one has been. I had a second throat surgery (first one was 20 May of this year), was on total voice rest for almost 4 weeks and was off work for nearly 5 weeks all told. We attended a LODD funeral three days after my surgery and now my wife is out of work following the passing of her employer and has come down with a case of shingles. (sigh) Aren’t you glad you didn’t ask “how are things going?” ;-)

I was just reading back over prior year’s Thanksgiving articles and found this paragraph:

“Thank you” – just 8 letters…2 small words, but two words that can warm the heart when spoken in sincerity. Like most things we say and do, the attitude of the heart makes all the difference in the meaning. Oh, I guess I could give all kinds of examples: the mother who says “thank you” with tears streaming down her cheeks when you bring her missing child home; the “thanks” someone says without really thinking about it when you pick up something they drop; the “thanks a lot” the driver says when you’ve just hung paper.

I know when Thanksgiving rolls around, it isn’t always easy for many of us to say “thank you” to God with a grateful heart. This year we’ve still got troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. We’ve attended too many LODD funerals. Loved ones have been injured, killed or succumbed to cancer, strokes, or other illnesses. Numerous sad and bad things have happened to most of us through the last year.

God knew these things would come our way, yet He had the Apostle Paul write the words, “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:18) That’s not saying that God expects us to thank Him for the sad and bad things that come our way, but rather that we are to find reasons to thank Him in spite of the things that come our way. As we find something for which to praise Him, He starts a healing within our hearts that helps us find strength to continue on through the sad and bad. In the midst of sorrow, the writer of Psalm 42 muses:

Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him,
For the help of His presence. Ps. 42:5 NASB

In Psalm 23, King David tells how he finds comfort and strength in difficult times by reflecting on God’s being there with him. As we find comfort and strength, it becomes easier to find reasons to thank Him. As we thank and praise Him, we find it easier to get closer to Him, and the cycle continues. Granted, this isn’t a quick process. It happens at different paces for different people, but God does bring us through.

[widget:news__religion]

In another place the psalmist says “I will enter Your gates with thanksgiving in my heart, I will enter Your courts with praise.” At the time that was written, there was a physical temple where God was worshipped in Israel. In our day, I believe that “His courts” simply means His presence, and I believe we can actually experience His presence here. Once you’ve experienced His presence, you can say with the writer of Psalm 84, “One day in Your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere” (Ps. 84:10).

Let’s close in a word of prayer…

Lord, we come once again to the Thanksgiving season. We give You praise and thanks for the many blessings You bestow upon us as we go from day to day. But as we count our blessings, we lift up those among us who have had loss and tragedy come to touch their lives. Help them to reach out to You, for You alone are able to bring comfort in these situations. Help them find even some small thing that they can be thankful for in the midst of sorrow. Encourage them, O Lord, and help them through the days ahead. We thank for Your protection of our peace officers here at home and service personnel around the world and ask for continued protection for them. Thank You, too, for permitting us to live in a country where we’re free to worship You. Amen.

Blessings to you and yours.

Chaplain Bill
llanochaps@moment.net

Holster fails: Officer Safety Issue

James Nightingale — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 05:24:17 -0800

This article I put in Law Enforcement News but I feel that those of us that are Firearms Instructors and have say in what holsters our Departments use should know this about Comp-Tac.

Recently I purchase two Comp-Tac paddle holsters. One was purchased for my duty Glock 23, 40 cal and the other was purchased for my off-duty Springfield sub-compact 40 cal. I am currently assigned to the Criminal Investigative Section of my police department and wear the holster for my duty Glock 23 on a daily basis. I am also the firearms instructor. Today while exiting my vehicle my gun snapped off at the paddle and flew across the parking lot. It appears that the ridge of the paddle "fatigued" and snapped off. I contacted Comp-Tac about this and they told me that, I should have been using a belt holster, (why they think they know what I should or should not be wearing as a holster is beyond me). They also advised me that they have had issues with fatigue of the paddle with repetitive sitting, which of course we don't ever do, which causes fatigue. With that being said I asked what their replacement policy is. They said I would have to buy a new one, because their 1 year warranty is up. This just floored me. They know that there is a design flaw and they are not doing anything about it unless it’s within the 1 year warranty. My recommendation is DO NOT BUY THIS HOLSTER. IT IS AN OBVOIUS OFFICER SAFTY ISSUE. PLEASE PASS THE WORD.

Post-Blast Training,

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:27:36 -0800

2010 International Terrorism and Organized Crime Conference

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:40:44 -0800

On the Streets: Aim for Peace, Prepare for War

By Dr. George J. Thompson — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:46:00 -0800

Dr. George J. Thompson is the President and Founder of the Verbal Judo Institute, a tactical training and management firm now based in Auburn, NY. For full details on Dr. Thompson’s work and training, please visit the Verbal Judo Web Site.

The most important thing we don’t teach, but should, is a coherent philosophy that can unite the need for physical force and the need to project and infuse those we contact with peace.

The "Peace Warrior" title I've used in training sounds like a contradiction, a paradox, and it is. The renowned former California Highway Patrol officer turned risk expert, consultant and lawyer, Gordon Graham, once narrated the story of his police mentor defining the "peace officer" as akin to the American eagle in the national seal on the back of the one dollar bill. The eagle holds olive branches in one talon and arrows in the other. Accordingly, advised the mentor, “Always extend the olive branches of peace to all, but hold the arrows of war ready. Always treat people with respect, but have a plan to kill them.”

We already do a good job of training our officers to use the "arrows of war." War stories have a significant place in readying the mind of the officer for "when/then" thinking. I'm all for illustrative war stories, and as one who has wrestled with scum on the streets, I know that these stories inform our response to violence. But we often neglect to teach a balance — we do not teach officers tactics to "extend the olive branch" to those with whom we interact.

"Peace stories", which is a term I use, should be equally stressed and taught to ready the mind of the officer to respond peaceably when possible. Remember: 98% - 99% of an officer’s interactions with others do not end in violence because we use our skills to defuse them.

People should be treated with respect and restraint until they prove they are "wolves," as Lt. Col David Grossman, U.S. Army (Ret.), author of On Killing, so well puts it in his article On Sheep, Wolves and Sheepdogs:

"The sheep generally do not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence. The difference, though, is that sheepdog must not, cannot and will not ever harm the sheep. Any sheepdog who intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed."

I believe we should teach officers how to increase their “Peace Power” without jeopardizing their safety. They should be taught tactical ways of "extending the olive branch of peace" to those we encounter who might initially want war.

Next Page: Learning from the Greeks >>>

[page]

The ancient Greeks believed that “all action flows from philosophy,” a doctrine I believe in firmly as well. We know two important things from training:

1. How we see ourselves — and how we allow ourselves to be described — determines what we become.
2. How we train determines what we do, and we know that under pressure, officers will fall back on what they have been best trained to do.

Let's address the second first. If we do not train officers to "walk the walk and talk the talk" of peace, there will be no peace. Peace can only come from within the officers themselves, because when they are called, it's because "the peace" has been comprimised. People call the police because they think we can restore it...to bring peace out of disorder.

Armed with tactics that can create peace in place of violence, officers are safer and more empowered to perform as they are sworn to do. Hence the need and use for peace language and peace stories, two skills not natural to most people. I do know, from having used the this approach early on, that the "ask 'em, tell 'em, then make 'em" approach almost guarantees violence.

But the more difficult issue is one of motivating the officers to accept this paradoxical role — to offer peace but be prepared to kill. The answer comes only by defining and presenting a clear philosophy of action.

People who kill without a philosophical base are just that, killers — junkyard dogs who bite everyone. But what sort of philosophical base might support the use of physical force, even killing? Where might we look for such a model?

Consider the U.S. Marine Corps. The latest move in the Corps has been to modify training to develop, as the Marines call it, the Ethical Marine Warrior.

In his article, “The Ethical Warrior of the 21st Century” (Marine Corps Gazette, February 2007), Lt. Col Joseph C. Shusko, USMC (Ret.), describes the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program as an ethics-based combatives program consisting of three elements: Character (ethical warrior training), Mental (military skills) and Physical (martial arts and conditioning).

Next Page: A marine on ethics >>>

[page]

According to Jack Hoban, the subject matter expert for the martial arts program, himself a retired Marine captain and one of the highest ranked martial artists in the world, says that ethical training is the key to the program. In his article, “The Ethical Marine Warrior” (Marine Corps Gazette, September 2007), Jack says:

"Our warrior ethics charge us to act differently than insurgents — more respectful of all life — killing only to protect lives and when absolutely necessary. The Ethical Warrior is first and foremost a Protector, of self and others — all others: one's comrades, citizens and yes, even the guilty and the enemy."

They are "defender-protectors," not killers, says Jack. There is a great deal of satisfaction to live one’s life according to the precept of protecting others, Jack writes, and it is this philosophical basis that gives and sustains a Marine’s dignity as he does his job — dirty and violent though it may sometimes be. Even in the Marine Corps, in the middle of a war, it is possible, indeed advisable, to treat people with dignity and respect. They, too, are learning it is not weakness to show concern, care and kindness — where possible.

We are also in the "protection of others" game, but our training has yet to develop a clear, definable philosophical base. There appears to be a split opinion on this. Some say peace tactics and strategies should be taught. Others think that is wrong-headed and dangerous.

Perhaps one problem is that our self-image as a profession is weak and contradictory. Throughout our training, and throughout our career, we are assaulted by paradox: Kick ass, take names. But be sensitive, be nice. Never back up, take no 'gup,' hammer. But be diplomatic, be community oriented, be nice.

What to do, how to think? If you’re too nice and community oriented, you get maimed or killed. You’re soft. You’re a sheep in sheepdog clothing.

If you’re rough, tough and overly violent, you get complaints and lawsuits, and you also get hurt. If you even talk peace or kindness, some want to say you’re weak.

In the absence of an agreed upon philosophical base, too many officers fall into seeing themselves as garbage men because, as they put it, they deal with “garbage” everyday. Such a view leads to acting like garbage — and to low self-esteem. The job is hard enough. The daily grind of difficult and potentially hazardous encounters builds stress that finds its outlets in over-reaction on the street and abuse at home.

Next Page: Avoiding a negative self-view >>>

[page]

Dr. Kevin M. Gilmartin’s book, "Emotional Survival for Police: A Guide for Officers and Their Families," illustrates precisely how such negative self-views destroy officers. Gilmartin (www.emotionalsurvival.com) illustrates the cost to officers and their families from the divisive “Us vs. Them" perspective. Such orientation is disastrous, to the community we serve as well as to us.

I suggest that we build a program for street officers similar to that of the Marine Corps, one that offers the physical (which we have), the mental (which we give in the classroom and roll calls) and character (which I am suggesting we develop). We do have ethics courses, and we do try to talk “professionalism,” but the message remains incomplete and unclear — to most.

Instead of seeing ourselves similar to garbage men or overworked, underappreciated hired guns, we should instead see ourselves for what we are, ethical peace warrior-defenders, protecting people from themselves and others. We are the Thin Blue Line precisely because we are protector-defenders of lives and we value life even when we have to take it to protect ourselves and others.

Seen this way, we now understand why we cannot be like those we serve. We cannot lose our tempers, use violence promiscuously or lie and cheat to profit ourselves. Because we literally stand between peace and disorder, the sheep and the wolves, we have to be prepared on all levels to meet that challenge.

As my colleague and VP Lee Fjelstad (www.verbal-judo.com) has said, "We stand among and yet separate from others, by definition, and to lead and protect means we have to set the standard for elite performance.” Elite means that we are unlike others — distinct and above — as all peace officers should be.

Next Page: Be the eagle >>>

[page]

But none of this suggests weakness. Yes, we need to know how and when to hit and hit hard, when to take a life and when not to. Yes, the world is getting more violent and unpredictable, so we have to be mentally ready to take action, action to prevent and redirect violence, as in peace language and peace tactics — or action, using the other physical force options to take someone out before they do harm to others or to ourselves.

To see ourselves as defender-protectors is not only accurate to the job, it is a self-sustaining and enhancing concept that we so desperately need if we are to prevent the extreme burnout and cynicism that afflicts so many of us. Good training is not enough; we need an uplifting vision of what we do to sustain us through those difficult times on the streets and at home. Indeed, we need this vision partly because it harmonizes with what, for most of us, was our reason for entering police service in the first place: to be a hero, to protect those who cannot (or will not) protect themselves. I don’t want to sound corny, but isn’t this the "real truth" for most of us?

Furthermore, it is an awful truth that we can hurt the ones we most love — those closest to us. We need to protect our loved ones from our own cynicism, and often from ourselves. With our divorce rate among the highest in the nation, we need to look carefully at how we approach the job and why we are out there. To live according to the precepts, as Jack Hoban so aptly put it, “Wherever I am, people are safer” and “When I come home, people are glad to see me,” is to live a fulfilling, enriching life.

The ethical peace warrior-defender should be the informing image of our profession. There is nothing weak about protecting others, nothing weak about showing respect or attempting to bring peace out of disorder and violence. Nothing.

Tac Com/Verbal Judo is only one arm of the warrior, but an important one. We teach officers to talk and act peaceably — hence the “verbal” — but equally must we be prepared to drop the violator when necessary — hence the “judo. ”

If every officer left the station house with one thought in mind — "People are safer, here and at home, because of my presence" — there would be far less burnout and far more joy in the job.

Be the eagle.

Christian Law Enforcement Summit

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:50:10 -0800

Getting Broken in on the Job

Brooke McKay | C.O.P.S. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:26:00 -0700

I arrived at C.O.P.S. Spouses’ Retreat the weekend of September 18-21, 2009, at the YMCA Trout Lodge in Potosi, Missouri, after only one month as the Marketing Coordinator for Concerns of Police Survivors. I knew the organization dealt with death, dying, and grief; yet I was not prepared for what I saw. I was instantly introduced to a young widow who was there for the first time. She was 25 years old, just one year older than me. While I smiled as I meet all the spouses, I could not get the young widow out of my head.
Part of my job that weekend was to interview that young surviving spouse; and, after meeting her, I began to worry. “Will I say something wrong? What if I make her cry?” I realized this was going to be a much more difficult task than anticipated.

On the second day of the retreat, I pulled her aside asking if I could speak with her. She seemed hesitant but agreed. One of the studies I had read in the C.O.P.S.’ office cited “the fewer number of years in a marriage, the more devastating the effects of the loss are on the surviving spouse”. Here I was just weeks before my first wedding anniversary, realizing how horrible this young widow’s life must be without her husband.

When Tiffany Cortez, Phoenix, AZ, and I sat down for the interview, I promised to make it as easy as possible. I began the interview by asking her to tell her story and why she is at C.O.P.S. Spouses’ Retreat. Tiffany explained, “I am here because my husband, George, age 23, went to work with the Phoenix, Arizona, Police Department one night and never came back. We had spoken just 15 minutes prior and exchanged text messages 5 minutes prior to the incident that claimed his life. I was at home doing laundry with our two boys, who were jumping on the bed, watching the Diamondbacks game and flipping through the channels when I heard ‘Officer down at 83rd and Encanto’ on the T.V. My heart just stopped.

I quickly tried calling him and he didn’t answer. I just knew it was him. I was taken to the hospital and that was when I found out what happen. George was making an arrest; the suspects were 18 and 19 years old, boyfriend and girlfriend. It was the girl’s birthday and the male was trying to cash a $250 fraudulent check that the female had written. My husband got called out to the scene and was by himself. As he had one handcuff on the male, the female tried to run out the door, George turned to yell at her and that was when the male pulled out a gun and shot him. He shot George twice, once in the face and again in the shoulder,” said Tiffany.

[widget:news__officer_down]

I fought back tears and kept waiting for Tiffany to cry as she explained her story. She was so strong but my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest and I was shaking.

“It was July 27, 2007, when George was killed. Our boys were 4 and 2 years old. George and I were high school sweethearts. We met when we were 16,” Tiffany said with a smile.

During the interview, I couldn’t help but think of my husband and our upcoming one year anniversary. Tiffany’s story really hit home because we are about the same age and she is now a widow left to raise her two children alone.

With a shaking voice I asked, “What do you think of Spouses’ Retreat so far?”

“I love Spouses’ Retreat,” Tiffany replied, “I was so scared coming, but I am very happy that I am here now. It’s been good to hear everybody’s stories and get to tell yours. The feedback from everybody’s issues and what is going on in their lives now relates to me, my loss, and my issues. I can relate to everyone that I have met because somehow, someway, there is a connection,” she replied.

She went on with a smile, “I now want to take my boys to C.O.P.S. Kids Camp. If they will let me take my 5 year old, he will be almost six; I just can’t leave him behind.” It is obvious that her two boys are her life.
As we finished the interview, I gave Tiffany a hug and thanked her for speaking with me. “If you ever need anything, do not hesitate to call me,” I said as we parted. I hope that we will stay in touch after the retreat.
I am glad the interview went well, but it had a dramatic effect on me, the interviewer. I had just met an amazingly strong woman who never shed a tear while telling of her devastated life; I was now the one crying. Tiffany made me realize that tomorrow is not a given and that sometimes life is too short. Yet she made me realize that this organization that I’ve known for only one month does some amazing things. And my job is to market C.O.P.S. It’s a task that I embrace knowing of the good it does for survivors like Tiffany Cortez.

When I got home after the retreat, I hugged my husband, I cried in his arms, and I told him how much he means to me.

Young Surviving Spouse Attends C.O.P.S. Retreat

Brooke McKay | C.O.P.S. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:24:00 -0700

As a first-time attendee at Concerns of Police Survivors’ Surviving Spouses’ Retreat, Tiffany Cortez of Phoenix, Arizona, seemed intimidated and scared upon arrival, but within hours began to open up as she met some amazing people. Amazing people that were survivors just like her. The C.O.P.S.’ Spouses’ Retreat was held in Potosi, Missouri, at the YMCA Trout Lodge the weekend of September 18-21. The amazing people she met were all surviving spouses of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.

There were 90 spouses at the retreat from all across the nation; 3 of the spouses were male. They all gathered for the specific purposes of dealing with grief and healing. Counseling sessions were held in the morning and afternoons were spent at classes on archery, shotgun, .22 pistols, climbing the Alpine Tower, or a high ropes course. These activities challenge the spouses to do things they never thought they could. Self-esteem is seriously eroded when someone you love is suddenly, often violently, taken from you. So C.O.P.S. plans these activities to strengthen and rebuild self-esteem. Succeeding at one of the challenges helps the survivors understand that they can overcome any obstacle that stands in their way so long as they set their mind to succeed.

Tiffany was one of the younger attendees. Now 25, she was just 23 years old when her husband, George Cortez, an officer with the Phoenix (AZ) Police Department, was killed. Tiffany explained, “I am at this retreat because on July 27, 2007, George went to work. I was at home doing laundry with our two boys, who were jumping on the bed and watching the Diamondbacks game flipping through the channels and I hear ‘Officer down at 83rd and Encanto’. My heart just stopped. I quickly tried calling him and he didn’t answer. I just knew he was the downed officer. Officers from the agency came and got me and took me to the hospital where I learned that George was dead. ”

Research conducted in the early years of C.O.P.S. show that the fewer number of years in a marriage, the more traumatic the sense of loss. Tiffany’s struggle has been like the struggles of other young, surviving spouses who have lost their spouses in the first 5 years of marriage.

[widget:news__officer_down]

Everyone at the retreat, unfortunately, has a story similar to Tiffany. One lost her husband in the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001; another was 4 months pregnant; another was left to raise 6 children alone. There were 90 very different stories, yet the stories were all similar. Everyone at the retreat lost a spouse; everyone at the retreat was struggling for survival; yet everyone relied on others to help them heal. That’s the power of strong peer support…one survivor helping another along the road to recovery.

“I can relate to everyone I have met this weekend, because somehow, someway, there is a connection,” said Tiffany. The spouses come from all walks of life, but for one weekend they do not have to put on a brave face. If they want to cry, they cry. If they want to laugh, they laugh. And no one judges them for how they are grieving. That, too, is the power of strong peer support.

And strong peer support is the foundation of Concerns of Police Survivors. Coupled with professional counseling, you can actually see a difference in the faces of the surviving spouses after just a weekend of support, counseling and challenges. They learn to live again at C.O.P.S. functions so that they can love again, knowing that healing is not forgetting. They develop a new sense of trust, an inner strength to overcome obstacles, and they have made new life-long friends. These new friends will be the best of friends; yet friends they wish they never met….because you see, the price they’ve paid is devastatingly high.
Aside from Spouses Retreat, C.O.P.S. also holds a Kids Camp for surviving children 6-14, Outward Bound® for surviving children 15-20, Adult Children Retreats, Siblings’ Retreat, Parents’ Retreat, In-Laws’ Retreat, and coming in 2010 an Affected Co-Workers Retreat.

Tiffany says, “I now want to take my boys to C.O.P.S. Kids Camp. We went to National Police Week in 2008, they had great activities and they boys had a blast.” The healing, love, and life renewed experienced at C.O.P.S.’ events helps C.O.P.S. to meet its mission of rebuilding shattered lives of America’s law enforcement surviving families. Just ask 25-year-old Tiffany Cortez.