Editor’s Note: This week’s PoliceOne First Person essay is from PoliceOne Member Anthony Ciampi, a patrol sergeant with the City of Westbrook (Maine) Department. In PoliceOne “First Person” essays, our Members and Columnists candidly share their own unique view of the world. This is a platform from which individual officers can share their own personal insights on issues confronting cops today, as well as opinions, observations, and advice on living life behind the thin blue line. If you want to share your own perspective with other P1 Members, simply send us an e-mail with your story.
By Sergeant Anthony Ciampi
Westbrook (Maine) Police Department
Over the years, I have noticed that we police officers tend to be creatures of habit and routine. It’s understandable that habit is a part of what we do; from shift schedules, to break time; to the manner in which we conduct certain investigations; and too many others to list. We’re logical thinkers who like predictable actions and outcomes and seek to find solutions to problems. We like to know-and want others to know-that we’ve “taken care of it” and that the task was done right. Even in our courtroom testimony, we proudly answer, “Because that’s the way I always do it,” when our performance and integrity are in question.
I ask then, what’s so bad about habit and routine? If your routine is to always wear your vest; practice 10 draws from the holster prior to briefing; or even kissing your beloved before the start of every tour, then I say all of these things are good habits. What happens when we develop a habit within our training rituals or in response to stress? What happens when a conditioned response becomes a habit that isn’t necessarily beneficial to a desired outcome or to our safety? As a matter of example, let’s answer this question, “Should suspects remove their hands from their pockets?”
Obviously awareness and prevention will go a long way to staying safe if officers keep vigilant in this area. Maintaining situational awareness by watching hands and other furtive movements, and swiftly addressing issues with the suspect(s) are good habits to reinforce. It’s true that having a conditioned response to certain cues could allow you to act without pausing, although conversely it could result in catastrophic failure. From the moment officers enter this profession, they’re told to “watch the hands,” that the hands will kill. Whether in training or on the street, officers can be heard saying “keep your hands out of your pockets,” which is an excellent response to keep those hands from being concealed or secretly accessing a weapon. What however should be the response toward a suspect who already has their hands concealed within a pocket-or other area for that matter?
Unfortunately, all too many times, I have seen situations wherein the suspect already has their hands concealed or worse, the distracted officer doesn’t see the hands slip into the pocket. At some point though, the officer becomes cognizant of the dangers of concealed hands and issues the predictable, “take your hands out of your pockets” as the conditioned response. Is there a problem with this mentality and is there a better way? I believe the answer to both is “yes.”
First off, not being attentive to a suspect’s movements could get you killed. Secondly, the pre-conditioned response of “take your hands out of your pockets” will in most cases result in a series of movements that your mind will conceptualize as the direct and obedient actions related to the request, but what happens when the actions mask malicious intent.
We know that action beats reaction, so by the time the brain process that the physical actions following, “take your hands out of your pockets,” is actually an imminent attack, we’re already playing catch-up and having to not only process, but also defend ourselves against a violent attacker who is intent on killing. What if we substitute preconditioning with tactics that enhance our overall awareness and preparedness for an imminent attack? Instead of a preconditioned statement that puts us in reaction mode, we opt for an overall mindset that promotes situational awareness and tactical dominance.
Here’s a sample scenario. Officers approach a suspect in reference to a Terry[1] stop and assume that the suspect, who has concealed hands, has a weapon, so they maintain distance, separate, and one of them gives commands, such as, “Police, don’t move.” The officers now ask the suspect what’s in their pocket, prefaced with, “without moving or removing your hands.” The officers actually listen to the way in which the suspect answers; listening and looking for verbal and non-verbal cues of deception. Understanding the dynamics of human interaction and predatory attack, the officers direct the suspect to face away from them before the suspect is instructed to remove their hands from their pockets and continue to walk through the encounter in the safest way possible.
In conclusion, each incident and encounter can be infinitely different, and although officers can develop some really good habits, they should constantly evaluate their mission-tactics – ensuring that those habits aren’t just the result of past-practice, but are based on sound tactics updated and adapted for the mission-at-hand, which is…and should always be, to go home in the same or better condition than when you arrived.
About the Author
Anthony Ciampi is a patrol sergeant with the City of Westbrook (Maine) Department. He has been in law enforcement for 17 years and has been a use of force instructor for ten years. He was a SWAT team member for eight years and a Field Training Officer for 10-years. He teaches situational use of force curriculum and tactics at the state and regional academies. He has been consulted as an expert witness in use of force incidents in other states and regularly contributes ideas on defensive tactics and use of force in the context of the National Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) program.
