Editor’s Note: 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. This week’s essay comes from PoliceOne Member Kevin LeDoux a Deputy with the York County (Maine) Sheriff’s Office who is a firearms and us- of-force instructor. Do you want to share your own perspective with other P1 Members? Send us an e-mail with your story.
By Deputy Sheriff Kevin LeDoux
York County (Maine) Sheriff’s Office
In the current economy, all police agencies are struggling to find areas to cut back and save money. Unfortunately, in law enforcement, many administrators, budget committees, city and county managers view the training line item as an acceptable area to cut and this could not be further from the truth!
Personnel costs constitute the majority of any department’s budget so many administrators look to that area for cuts. The problem is that while the department may initially save money, a lawsuit can (and will) erase any savings. It is not a question of whether a department will get sued — rather, it is when the department gets sued. Those departments that fail to provide adequate training will be subjected to greater settlements.
For some reason it is believed that meeting the minimum standards will not only prepare law enforcement officers to deal with the ever increasing level of violence we face, but will also insulate a department from liability in the aftermath. There are multiple court cases which counter this line of thought. Departments are held liable for failure to train or inadequate training for what should be seen as a predictable event.
Many departments require their officers to go to the range twice a year. Typically, one of those sessions is to qualify with their issued weapons, which has been noted by numerous courts to not be considered “training.” We expect our officers to successfully be prepared to engage in a lethal force encounter having handled their weapons only two times in an entire year!
The mere thought of this is disconcerting. Would you trust your life, or the life of a loved one, to a heart surgeon who only performs surgery twice a year? Or a pilot who only flies two times a year? I don’t believe many of us would be comfortable with either scenario. So why is this level of training acceptable in law enforcement?
Professional law enforcement officers should take the initiative to obtain training outside of their department, as no department could realistically supply an officer with every type of training opportunity to meet every scenario one may encounter. However, this does not alleviate the department from its responsibility to protect their most costly investment, their officers.
Think of department training as a savings account. You actually have two accounts, the individual officers’ and the overall department’s account. By providing your officers with realistic, relevant and continuous training you are making huge deposits into the officers “survival” account. These deposits will be used to protect the officer and the citizens he or she serves in a safe, professional and efficient manner. This same training will also be stored in the department “survival” account. These deposits will show a department with well trained staff who are current with recent court decisions and employing the most contemporary training techniques available.
The officer “survival” account will provide officers the skills to survive and prevail in a lethal force encounter, allowing them to return to serving the public and continue being a productive member of the department. The department “survival” account will allow the agency to prevail in the legal battle that will inevitably follow after a lethal force encounter. A solid training program insulates an agency from vicarious liability by showing a reviewing court that their personnel are highly trained professionals who have documented and court defensible training that meets current case law standards.
Having a thorough training program that does not take a back seat has many benefits to a department. Officers are more confident in their decision making processes, more reasonable and judicious in their use of force and in the event force is required, they are highly trained to quickly and safely apply lethal and non-lethal techniques to bring the situation to a successful conclusion.
Officer survival training is a pay now or pay later scenario for any agency. By investing a minimal amount of money now departments have the potential to save large sums of money later on.
Think about this hypothetical scenario — you know that three weeks from now one of your officers will be involved in a lethal force encounter that will result in a civil action. Would you do anything differently as an administrator? Clearly, everybody would immediately schedule officer survival training.
Why not treat the above scenario as an eventuality? Prepare your officers now for that day and if it does not come then you have spent your money and time making a better, well-rounded officer. If it does come to pass, then you have expended funds and time helping your officer return to their loved ones and continue to be a productive member of your agency. I think both options are highly desirable to any administrator as the officers are the most valuable asset of any agency.
Many departments quickly view cutting funding from the training budget as a quick fix to budget challenges. Training should actually be the last area cut because in the long run, it will cost an agency more money and potentially one of your officer’s lives. Spend the time, effort and money now to prevent a negative outcome in the future. Strive to be the department that is known as a leader with a great training program. It is possible if you make training a priority!
About the Author
Deputy Kevin LeDoux is one of the York County Sheriff’s Office firearms and use of force instructors. He has been in law enforcement for 11 years. He is certified as an instructor in firearms and less lethal munitions and was a member of the Regional Tactical Team for 6 years.
