Today’s tip: Search the suspect again slowly and thoroughly just before entering the jail, while they are still handcuffed.
Conducting an improper search or no search has always been one of the ten deadly errors, giving suspects the opportunity to carry out their deadly designs on law enforcement officers. Nearly every officer with any time on the street will have a story that they can tell you about, “the time I arrested this guy and searched him and found out later that I missed a…….”
This can also happen to a SWAT Tactical Operator, and can be corrected if officers remind themselves:
1. I am human and fallible.
2. Sometimes in SWAT operations multiple persons handle a suspect. My policy should be that everyone I transport that is under arrest, will be searched by me.
3. Conditions at scenes of arrest are dynamic and could lead to a distraction, causing me to miss something, during a search.
4. I would not turn in a report without proof reading it. Therefore I should check my work one more time before taking a prisoner into a jail.
5. There are no firearms in a jail and if I miss a firearm or another deadly weapon I am jeopardizing my safety and the safety of others.
Often, during SWAT incidents, the suspect is searched in a prone position initially, which is not conducive for a good thorough search. The SWAT officer is often wearing tactical gloves, which inhibits the ability to detect by touch. The situations surrounding the arrest have been dynamic and there are often multiple subjects. Adding to this is the adrenaline rush that accompanies high risk arrests, causes the search to be unintentionally rushed and cursory.