Throughout 2023, the primary challenge facing law enforcement continued to be recruitment. This year, our coverage highlighted not only the ongoing difficulties in attracting new officers and retaining existing staff but also the broader implications of these staffing issues. Law enforcement agencies have been grappling with the effects of understaffing, including overburdened officers, budget overruns due to excessive overtime, and in extreme cases, the suspension of certain patrols.
However, there’s a glimmer of hope on the horizon. Reports suggest that the number of recruits is finally beginning to surpass the rate of retirements, indicating a positive trend in recruitment. This increase in new officers joining the ranks is a welcome change, though it will take time for communities to fully experience the benefits.
In addition to recruitment challenges, 2023 has also seen concerning trends in crime rates, including spikes in certain types of criminal activities. Law enforcement officers have faced increased risks, including ambushes and other direct threats to their safety. Despite these daunting challenges, veteran officers remain dedicated to their duty of protecting and serving, particularly the most vulnerable members of society.
At Police1, we are thankful for the chance to collaborate with our columnists, contributors and readers in delivering valuable content. Our goal is to ensure officers are not only safe while on duty but also inspired to excel every day.
Digital editions and special coverage
A cornerstone of Police1’s editorial content is our digital editions and special coverage packages, which focus on timely issues of importance to law enforcement nationwide.
March saw the publication of our first digital edition of the year: Prevention, disruption & response: The strategies communities must deploy to stop school shootings. This guide outlined how city officials, law enforcement, community leaders and parents can become involved in the development of strategies, plans, procedures and training to address the threat of school shootings in their community; the importance of enhanced counseling and effective threat assessment measures to disrupt a potential shooter’s pathway to violence; and what we can learn from averted acts of school violence. We also published several additional articles and podcasts on this topic that can be found on this page here, including an interview with retired FBI Special Agent Katherine Schweit on the progress being made in stopping the active shooter threat. In addition, we hosted two webinars in support of this critical topic: Developing effective strategies to prevent and respond to school shootings and Building safety schools.
June saw the publication of the results from our third annual “What Cops Want” survey. More than 4,100 LEOs responded to questions about the police recruitment and retention crisis. The digital edition we published detailed the survey findings including articles on what police officers love and hate about their jobs, dealing with toxic messages sabotaging officer recruitment and how to use the survey data to improve recruitment and retention. We featured additional survey analysis here and you can view an on-demand webinar discussing the results of the survey here.
Our third digital edition of the year hit the streets in September. In “Empowering law enforcement through data sharing” we review the benefits of data sharing between agencies, identify the roadblocks that currently prevent effective data sharing, outline the role of technology in facilitating information sharing and detail case studies that show the benefits of data sharing in action. Additional resources supporting this digital edition can be found here including a podcast on how a California real-time information center gathers and shares information and grant-funding opportunities to facilitate law enforcement data sharing.
Our final digital edition (due for release in early January) looks at the topic of evolving traffic enforcement technology and tactics. We discuss the modernization of traffic stop tools and tactics, emphasizing efficiency and safety in the face of staffing challenges and evolving public expectations. Supporting content can be found here.
Editorial webinars
We continued our successful series of law enforcement webinars in 2023, with the Police1 editorial team overseeing 10 live events. These webinars are free for attendees and after the live event, we post an in-demand version for ongoing streaming.
These webinars attract thousands of LEOs to the live events, followed by many more viewing the on-demand version. This year we featured the following:
- How to build and sustain and officer wellness program moderated by Policing Matters podcast host Jim Dudley with guests Stanislaus County Sheriff Jeff Dirkse and Sergeant Aaron Costello.
- Promotional interview tactics for success presented by Andrew Borello.
- Developing effective strategies to prevent and respond to school shootings moderated by Policing Matters podcast host Jim Dudley with guests retired FBI Special Agent Katherine Schweit, Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Director Pete Blair and Safe Havens International Executive Director Michael Dorn.
- Using human performance science to inform police training and improve officer decision-making moderated by Lewis “Von” Kliem, MCJ, JD, LLM, with guests Simon Baldwin, Lon Bartel, John Bostain and Chad Lyman.
- Building safer schools moderated by Navigate360 CEO JP Guilbault with guests Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, Secure Education Consultants President Jason Russell and Navigate 360 Vice President of Threat Detection and Prevention Program Development Joe McKenna.
- What cops want in 2023: The impact of the police recruitment & retention crisis moderated by Policing Matters podcast host Jim Dudley with guests Janay Gasparini, Ph.D., Barry Reynolds and Dr. Charlie Scheer.
- Criminal and non-criminal barricade response: Understanding tactics, decision-making and the law moderated by Scott Savage with guests San Francisco Police Department Lieutenant Donald Anderson, LAPD SWAT Commander Lieutenant Ruben Lopez and attorney Laura Scarry
- Custody transitions: Officer safety from intake through booking moderated by Tyson Kilbey with guests Hernando County (Florida) Sheriff’s Office Major Shaun Klucznik, Chautauqua County (New York) Sheriff James Quattrone and Dr. Jeffrey E. Keller.
- Pursuit response update moderated by Chief Ken Wallentine with guests University of South Carolina professor Dr. Geoff Alpert, City of Las Vegas Director/Chief Jason Potts and Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs Executive Director. Steve Strachan.
- De-escalation: How research is informing training and tactics moderated by Director of the National Institute of Justice Nancy La Vigne, Ph.D., with guests National Policing Institute Senior Vice President Robin S. Engel, Ph.D., Louisville Deputy Chief Paul L. Humphrey and Sergeant Justin Witt.
Coming in 2024: Register now for our upcoming editorial webinars in January and February. Tactical disengagement and de-escalation is scheduled for January 18 and Police recruitment success strategies: A Policing Matters special is scheduled for February 12.
Policing Matters podcast
We worked with podcast host Jim Dudley to publish 53 episodes of the Policing Matters podcast, with a year full of diverse topics and interesting guests. This year also saw us producing each podcast in both video and audio format and sharing the video on Police1’s YouTube channel.
Here’s just a small selection of the topics we brought to listeners and viewers this year:
- How the Metropolitan DC police department is improving recruitment
- Improving police response to persons with disabilities
- Dr. Jack Rozel on behavioral threat assessment management
- ALERRT’s Dr. Peter Blair on law enforcement scene management during active shooter response
Coming in 2024: Look for themed podcast miniseries from Policing Matters, including an upcoming six-part series on police use of force with Jamie Borden. Be sure to add Policing Matters to your playlist.
First Responder Wellness Week
Our inaugural First Responder Wellness Week, produced in conjunction with Lexipol, Cordico and our sister sites, FireRescue1 and EMS1, ran from March 27-31 and was designed to provide resources, support and community to help public safety personnel better understand the mental and physical health risks that come with the job.
On Police1, we produced dozens of articles, videos and downloadable assets all with the goal of improving police officer resiliency. With nearly 100,000 page views of our content, it is clear physical and mental wellness is a priority for everyone in public safety.
Here’s a selection of the content we produced:
- Assess your agency’s health and wellness
- 6 trauma management best practices for police organizations
- Making workouts count: How to workout SMARTer, not harder
- Battling officer stress through building resiliency
Coming in 2024: Mark your calendars for the second annual First Responder Wellness Week slated for March 25-29.
Police1’s Leader Playbook and Leadership Beat column
If you are a regular Police1 reader, you will know we are committed to focusing on leadership training for police leaders. Moving into a leadership role can be an exhilarating and proud moment; it can also be a daunting one. In recognition of that, we launched the Police Leader Playbook in June 2023, which is designed to provide resources to enhance your leadership skills, build trust with those you lead and boost your confidence.
Key content of the playbook includes our Leadership Development Series, where we address specific areas of leadership competency and offer learning points, strategies and tips. In addition, the Police Leader Playbook also houses our Leadership Beat column, where through a handful of questions presented by Police1, veteran leaders reflect on their early days in leadership roles and offer advice, while newer leaders detail their experiences taking on a new position. To date we have interviewed 12 police chiefs from across the country:
- Fresno (California) Police Chief Paco Balderrama discusses how the role of chief is not to micromanage but to inspire
- New Mexico State Police Chief W. Troy Weisler discusses how to enhance agency communication and foster a team-oriented culture
- Wright State University (Ohio) Chief Kurt Holden discusses how the five pillars of a successful organization − people, policy, training, supervision and discipline – drive his decision-making process
- University Circle (Ohio) Police Chief Tom Wetzel discusses the importance of fostering a servant guardian mindset, value-based behaviors and collaborative decision-making
- Pocatello (Idaho) Police Chief Roger Schei details how he seeks to improve morale, align his agency more closely with its mission and initiate a shift in culture
- Evanston Police (Illinois) Chief Schenita Stewart shares her key strategies to build employee morale through servant leadership
- City of North St. Paul (Minnesota) Chief Phil Baebenroth discusses how prioritizing safety, technology, equipment and opportunities is key to building officer morale
- Oceanside (California) Police Chief Kedrick Sadler discusses how being accountable to yourself and your followers is the foundation of effective leadership
- Fremont (California) Police Chief Sean Washington details how his agency seeks to serve by hearing the perspectives of both their personnel and their community
- Greensboro (Maryland) Police Chief George Paugh discusses the importance of offering good technology and equipment for officers, and strengthening bonds with the community
- City of Waukee (Iowa) Police Chief Chad McCluskey discusses how culture, trust and respect are the foundation for officer retention
- Alton (Texas) Police Chief Jonathan B. Flores details the incremental steps he has taken to implement transformative change in his agency
Coming in 2024: Look out for interviews with Hutto (Texas) Police Chief Jeffrey Yarbrough and Altoona (Wisconsin) Police Chief Kelly Bakken publishing in early January. Follow all our Leadership Beat content here.
IACP 2023
The Police1 editorial team was on the ground in San Diego this year to report from the IACP exhibit hall floor and summarize key educational sessions. A big thanks to Lexipol Editorial Director Greg Friese for his summaries of several sessions including how to fund a law enforcement childcare center and advancing policing through AI. We also tasked Police1 columnist Eric Tung and Michelle Gundy with reporting from the event.
In addition to our written coverage, we posted several video interviews with IACP speakers, as well as some of the sights and sounds from this year’s conference:
New Police1 authors in 2023
We had over 100 new authors write for Police1 in 2023 on a variety of topics. Here’s just a small sample:
- How winning an art contest connected me to the community I serve by Elizabeth Prillinger
- Will AI chatbots power the future of police language translation? by Lt. Tai Seki
- Today’s police leadership paradigm: Toddlers leading babies by Hank Prim
- How action shooting sports can help law enforcement by Sergeant Michael Cavanaugh
- Trauma patient transports by law enforcement by Robert Carlson
We are committed to working with new and emerging writers, offering mentorship and guidance. We encourage anyone interested in writing to first read our author guidelines and then submit ideas.
News analysis
Some of the highest-viewed articles on Police1 deal with the analysis of current events. The Police1 editorial team works closely with columnists to identify incidents where a review of what happened and a discussion of the implications for law enforcement would be beneficial to Police1 readers. Some of the top articles this year included:
- Nashville PD’s response to the Covenant School active shooter was ‘by the numbers’ by Dan Marcou
- Why every police leader should read the ‘Renewed Call to Action’ report by Chief Joel Shults
- Incident analysis: Learning lessons from officer’s hood ride during traffic stop by Duane Wolfe
- State your case: Should an active shooter’s manifesto be made public? By Jim Dudley and Chief Joel Shults
- How to handle the speeding cop by Duane Wolfe
- The Texas outlet mall active shooter: The tragedy and the triumph by Dan Marcou
- Incident analysis: Bodycam video shows how heroic North Dakota officer stopped ambush by Duane Wolfe
Editor’s picks
We published nearly 700 pieces of content on Police1 this year, in addition to the thousands of news articles. We are incredibly grateful for the efforts of everyone who wrote articles. While it is nearly impossible to select “favorites,” here are some of our top picks:
- Where did all the old cops go? by Kathleen Dias
- 12 tactical options for surviving a personnel shortage by Dan Marcou
- Why focused training on one-handed shooting drills is crucial to officer survival by Todd Fletcher
- How a Nebraska police chief has leveraged technology and predictive policing to decrease crime by Michelle Gundy
- Kyle Dinkheller’s sacrifice: How the tragic 1998 incident continues to shape law enforcement training and tactics by Warren Wilson
Year in review coverage
We have just finished our year in review coverage, which features three fantastic profiles. Lt. Dan Marcou tells the story of the fatal Fargo ambush from the only officer left standing to eliminate the gunman and award-winning freelance writer Katja Ridderbusch details a case study in effective officer recruitment and retention and profiles corrections officer Ehea Schuerch whose rise in the world of tactical sports has helped her become a better public safety officer.
We also offered a roundup of the best police recruitment videos of 2023, our annual list of 50 states, 50 police heroes by Senior Editor Sarah Calams and a countdown of the biggest events in law enforcement this year from Policing Matters podcast host Jim Dudley. Find all our year in review coverage here.
Editorial team member achievements
I would like to close by recognizing the many achievements of the Police1 editorial team – Senior Editor Sarah Calams, Assistant Editor Joanna Putman and News Editor Sarah Roebuck. Without their efforts, breaking news would not get posted on the websites each day. In addition, Sarah Calams contributes original content throughout the year. My favorites in 2023 include:
- Operationalizing ‘never again’: The role of police in the Holocaust spurs an international group of law enforcement leaders to create hate crime and bias training
- I’m taking an ice bath for 30 days and this is what I’m hoping to gain
- Surviving in stairwell B: A Port Authority officer’s story of survival after steel, concrete came crashing down on him during the World Trade Center’s North Tower collapse
Police1’s sister site, Corrections1
In addition to the content posted on Police1, the editorial team also posted hundreds of news items and nearly 100 pieces of original content from contributors on Corrections1.
We worked with 22 new authors this year including Alexander Burton and Cheryl Lero Jonson who reported on findings from research on key corrections issues, Shawn Roscoe posted the question of whether drones are a viable solution for correctional staffing challenges and MaryAnn looked at what America can learn from Norway’s prisons.
Correction1’s regular columnists also contributed several excellent articles this year, including:
- Reasons why you should and should not apologize to an inmate by Zohar Zaied
- Train to retain: Developing corrections staff by Gary Cornelius
- Suicide risks after guilty verdicts and felony sentencing by Gary York
In November 2023, we published the digital edition Advancing community corrections on Corrections1. With caseloads on the rise and limited resources, the field has turned to innovative solutions to enhance offender accountability, improve case management and increase public safety. We also hosted the webinar Custody transitions: Officer safety from intake through booking on both Police1 and Corrections1.
On behalf of the entire Police1 team, we wish everyone a Happy New Year!
