Police News

A consultant with the Texas Association of Counties instructed about 20 drivers over a two-day period at the Pct. 4 Barn in Kilgore. Pct. 4 Commissioner Shannon Brown invited the TAC after learning about the service, which has shown to practically eliminate driving incidents within the first six months of training, driving simulator consultant Don … Continued

Let’s begin with identifying what a “traffic-related” situation really is and what liabilities we may actually be able to reduce through training. In some of the categorizing for LODD’s, a variety of situations are often grouped together such as “being run-over” or “assaulted” by an automobile. However, in real police work, we know that so … Continued

What a tragic year 2016 was in law enforcement line of duty deaths involving ambush, violent assaults and firearms. Depending on the source that you use, LODDs due to firearms are up a staggering 61% to 83% over 2015, while overall LODDs are up 12% to 18% over 2015. It is a reminder that we … Continued

It may seem counter-intuitive, but one of the key advantages of a simulation-based high-speed pursuit training program is more crashes. THE VALUE OF SIMULATED CRASHES IN HIGH SPEED PURSUIT TRAINING A car crash is a highly instructive experience. We already know that “‘learning by doing’ only works so long as the feedback from our actions … Continued

Three weeks ago, when the New Britain Police Department and Mayor Erin Stewart told the public about their new police training simulator, they couldn’t have had any idea how relevant this technology would become. In a span of five days in mid-April, three Connecticut police departments would find themselves entrenched in controversial police shootings. The … Continued

The 2009 volume of the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training’s (POST’s) Driver Training Study lists six police pursuit training “best practices.” But one vital skill is missing. Can you spot it? 1) Use “hybrid training.” This should combine both behind-the-wheel closed-course driving and advanced police pursuit training simulators. 2) Adopt advanced technology. … Continued

NEW BRITAIN — Police Sgt. Thomas Gray adjusts the patrol car’s seat, straps on the seat belt, shifts into drive and begins a lights-and-siren emergency run across town. Rush-hour traffic makes it more of a maze than a race, and Gray gets bounced around a bit as he swerves past a bus, brakes fast for … Continued

According to POST (California’s Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training), California law enforcement are injured in roughly 700 automobile collisions each year. Conventional wisdom holds that it is younger officers who get into the most high-speed pursuit accidents, either because of inexperience, poor judgement, poor control of their emotions, or a combination of all … Continued

“Simulator sickness” is a persistent issue in many high speed pursuit training programs, and can really derail a session. Simulator sickness (also called “simulator adaptation syndrome” or “SAS”) has been an issue for as long as there have been modern vehicle simulators. (Trainers first noted this cocktail of nausea, headaches, cold-sweats, and eye strain in … Continued

It seems almost laughable to say this, but police pursuit training programs need to directly address seatbelt usage. It’s a simple fact: Seat belts have the capacity to save more law enforcement lives every year than bullet-proof vests, riot gear, tasers, and sidearms. A bit over 88 percent of U.S. drivers and front-seat passengers regularly … Continued