One of the first things we as law enforcement officers need to know is that when you arrive on scene, there are a few things going on. One, we should be checking our surroundings as we approach the subject. You should also be checking the subject. What we sometimes forget is the subject is checking you also. Your subject also has a plan.
One of the things subjects are able to do when they physically attack officers is that they maintain control. We miss key points. We don’t listen.
When a subject tells you over and over he is not going to do what you are saying or this subject as a history of violence with officers, it seems to go in one ear and out the other. I don’t know if we think we have seen it all or we know it all. There is one thing you can’t see and that is the subject’s will to win.
So remember listen to what you are being told when the next bad guy says he is going to fight or you already know his/her history. Just listen — and believe him/her — and formulate your plan for winning.