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What happens when a split-second decision on the street becomes a media headline stripped of context? In this episode of the Policing Matters podcast, retired LAPD Captain Greg Meyer joins host Jim Dudley on the Policing Matters podcast to discuss his new book, “Hard Cases: Police Use of Force in America.” Drawing from decades of experience and insider knowledge on some of the most controversial police incidents, Meyer shares why he wrote the book, the importance of addressing media misinformation and how law enforcement leaders can push back against false narratives.
Tune in to discover:
- Why letting headlines define use-of-force cases harms officers — and how to set the record straight before misinformation takes hold
- What really happened in high-profile incidents — and how expert insight can shift public understanding
- Why bodycam footage can mislead — and how to explain what it doesn’t show
- How banning neck restraints backfired — and what agencies can do to reduce injuries without losing effective tools
Key takeaways from this episode
- Narratives shape perception, not facts: When police incidents make headlines, early media reports and social media reactions often define the public’s lasting perception — regardless of later findings or investigative outcomes.
- Body-worn cameras don’t tell the whole story: Meyer stresses that while bodycams are valuable, their footage is limited by angle and context. Audio often provides better insight into officer and suspect behavior.
- False narratives have long-term consequences: Cases like Ferguson’s “hands up, don’t shoot” show how myths can persist despite official findings, fueling distrust and shaping legislation that may remove useful tools from officers.
- Training needs to reflect reality: Meyer highlights that fragmented or stovepiped training fails officers in the field. Realistic, integrated, stress-based scenarios better prepare officers for complex encounters.
- Leaders must speak early and truthfully: Chiefs and sheriffs must push back on misinformation promptly and factually — without compromising investigations — to maintain public trust and defend lawful officer actions.
About our guest
Greg Meyer retired as a captain with the Los Angeles Police Department after 30 years of police service. His final assignment was as captain of the Los Angeles Police Academy. He chaired both the LAPD’s Use of Force Best Practices Work Group and the Tactics Training Review Committee. Since 1989, he has been engaged as a police tactics and procedures expert in numerous use-of-force and other police procedures cases. From 2015-2017, he was the designated Law Enforcement and Policing Practices Subject Matter Expert for the US Department of Homeland Security–Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, to conduct independent investigations and/or reviews of selected public complaints and use of force incidents. Greg specializes in risk management issues including policy, training, equipment, tactics, supervision, investigation, documentation, review processes, and law as it applies to police officers, with a focus on injury reduction during lethal and nonlethal encounters. He helped redesign California POST’s 40-hour investigation course for officer-involved shootings and arrest-related deaths, and he was an instructor at the course.
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