We’ve reported previously on the dangers of fatigue in policing, but we haven’t described a creative countermeasure, typified by the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office in Redwood City, CA. To help deputies who would otherwise face exhausting commutes after long shifts, the SO has established 2 free “crash pads” where personnel can get adequate sleep...Read More
Pilot studies for 2 new research projects with significant officer-survival implications will get underway next month [12/07] at a new testing facility designed by the Force Science Research Center near the campus of Minnesota State University-Mankato. One study will seek to measure the time required for an “attentional shift” during a high-stress, potentially violent confrontation....Read More
You’ve no doubt read or watched the national coverage about the off-duty law officer in a one-stoplight timber town in Wisconsin’s North Woods who recently burst into an early-hours pizza party of high school friends…slaughtered 6 of them, including his ex-girlfriend, with his AR-15…opened fire on a responding fellow officer, a friend of his…eluded authorities...Read More
Three studies that will explore certain subtleties of force encounters in hopes of improving safety on the street are underway at the Force Science Research Center at Minnesota State University-Mankato. One is expected to provide insights into a phenomenon that has not previously been analyzed in detail, says FSRC’s executive director, Dr. Bill Lewinski. That’s...Read More
In law enforcement, you strive to be a 5%er, a symbol of excellence and commitment. But you may also be a 40%er. And that ain’t so good. After surveying 5,296 LEOs in North America, a Harvard Medical School group reports that nearly 40% (38.8%) of active-duty officers are suffering from sleep abnormalities. These include apnea,...Read More
The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin has added its voice to the growing concern about police fatigue, with an article in its August issue characterizing the problem as “an accident waiting to happen.” Among other things, the author, Spcl. Agt. Dennis Lindsey, a senior instructor at the DEA Academy and an international fellow at the Australian...Read More
Researchers from the University of Kentucky confirmed recently what skillful cops have known for years: well-timed, well-crafted distractions can derail difficult suspects from violent intentions. The researchers tested this theory with drunks, but according to behavioral scientist Dr. Bill Lewinski, executive director of the Force Science Research Center, their findings are relevant to a wide...Read More
Two major new studies of how best to train officers to maximize their street skills and win against potentially deadly suspects are being launched by the Force Science Research Center. One project will focus on finding and teaching the most effective techniques for verbally gaining cooperation and preventing assaults by difficult-to-control subjects, such as the...Read More
Brief, dark, and grainy, the video image is a punch to the gut. A California sheriff’s deputy trying to detain a subject who’s on the ground after a high-speed chase says to him, “Get up! Get up!” The man says, “Ok, I’m gonna get up,” and starts to rise. Without another word, the deputy shoots...Read More
Part 2 of a 2-Part Series [Note: In Part 1 of this series, sent 6/18/07, we reported results of an important new study about LEOs and the use of deadly force, conducted by Dr. Darrell Ross, chairman of the Dept. of Law Enforcement and Justice Administration at Western Illinois University, who presented his findings at...Read More
