Beyond Survival: Training Officers to Win PDF

BEYOND SURVIVAL: TRAINING OFFICERS TO WIN By Brian Willis the use of effective communication skills to gain the voluntary compliance of a subject, to the use of lethal force to win a confrontation by taking the subject’s life to protect the officer or someone else. Training officers to win is about...

BEYOND SURVIVAL: TRAINING OFFICERS TO WIN By Brian Willis the use of effective communication skills to gain the voluntary compliance of a subject, to the use of lethal force to win a confrontation by taking the subject’s life to protect the officer or someone else. Training officers to win is about teaching them to be calm, focused, in-control and confident in any situation. It is about training them to assess the situation and respond in a manner that is reasonable and necessary based on the totality of the circumstances. It is also about providing officers with the verbal and non-verbal communication skills so their interactions with people are clear, concise and professional. For many years law enforcement trainers have talked about the Survival State of Mind, Officer Survival and the Survival Mindset. This philosophy was on the leading edge of mental preparation and conditioning training 20 years ago and has played an important role in the advancement of law enforcement training. The time has come however, to take this philosophy to the next level in the evolution of training. This means moving beyond training officers to Survive and train them to WIN. Every year there are hundreds officers who are victims of violent assaults which they survive, but result in these officers being seriously injured, and in some cases permanently disabled. We have to respect and admire these officers for surviving these horrendous encounters; however, we are left to wonder what the outcome could have been if they had been trained to win and not just survive; if they had been trained to be the predator and not the prey. We must learn from the experiences of those officers and realize that the first step in this transition to Winning is accepting the reality that for many officers ‘Survival’ is completely defensive in nature. Winning is about control. An officer who is in control of themselves because they have a high degree of competence and confidence in their skills, tactics and knowledge will be more easily able to control subjects and situations. They use their professional presence as well conflict resolution and crisis intervention skills effectively. Training officers to win is about teaching them to be calm, focused, in control and confident in any situation. Winning is about understanding. Officers with the winning mind understand the realities of action versus reaction, and time and distance. They understand when to disengage to create distance, time and options and they understand when to penetrate and take away time and options from their opponent. They understand the difference between killing and murder and they understand that as law enforcement professionals they may have to take a life to save a life. They understand that the only acceptable goal in any confrontation is winning. Unfortunately many people mistaken believe that teaching officers to win is tantamount to training them to be paranoid, to over react, to respond excessively and to brutalize subjects. Nothing could be further from the truth. Winning takes many forms and can range from Winning is about commitment. Officers who posses the winning mind commit to train throughout their careers to enhance their skills, knowledge, fitness and tactics. While others 1 make excuses and abdicate the responsibility for training to their agency or organization those with the winning mind accept that fact that there has never been, and never will be, a law enforcement agency killed or injured in combat. Cops get killed and injured in the line of duty, not agencies. Therefore they make a personal commitment to continually train their mind and body.    Physical quickness & speed Strength and power Mental calmness, focus, control and confidence  Controlled aggression  Environmental awareness including the use of concealment, cover and movement  Understanding one’s opponent  Commitment to the goal/mission Without these traits these animals do not survive. Because we admire and appreciate these traits the images of predatory animals are often used as symbols of strength, power, and unity. Taking a step back and examining the list it becomes apparent that these are the same qualities trainers and organizations work to instill in law enforcement officers during officer safety, firearms and subject control tactics training. The same traits that make the difference between success and failure, life and death in the animal world can also make the difference between being the victor and the victim for law enforcement professionals involved in violent altercations. Winning is about offense. In order to win officers need to be conditioned to act and think offensively rather than defensively. In a sporting event if a team only ever plays defense the best they can hope for is a tie, which still earns them a point in the league standings. On the street there are no ties, and a loss for a law enforcement officer can have tragic consequences. In sports the term ‘sudden death overtime’ creates tension and excitement for the viewing public; for law enforcement officers it can mean adding another name to the memorial walls. Officers with the winning mind treat every block as an offensive technique designed to attack and negate the assailant’s deliver system. These officers accept that every situation is winnable knowing that this is not the superman syndrome, but an acceptance that if they are in it, they will win it. Trainers may have numerous obstacles to overcome in order to instill this attitude in new recruits. Many of these new officers have never been in a real fight and some have never played contact sports. As a result, they have no idea what it is like to get punched or kicked, to have someone threaten them or to experienced any form of interpersonal human aggression. Some have been taught since they were small children that it is wrong to fight, others are taught to always play fair and many are told at home and at church that it is wrong to kill. New officers must understand that they will be exposed to elements of society raised in a culture of violence where they were taught that you must fight to get what you want and protect what is yours. They must accept that there are those people on the street and in the prisons who are prepared to hurt or kill a cop or corrections officer to accomplish a goal or make a point. Trainers need to ensure that they are conducting dynamic and realistic confrontation simulation training. This allows new officers to experience interpersonal human aggression and be successful in defeating a variety of threats. We are often left to wonder what the outcome could have been if they had been trained to win and not just to survive; if they had been trained to be the predator and not the prey. Winning is about being the predator, not the prey. For many people the word ‘Predator’ conjures up very negative images. They tend to think of the seedy element of society who prey on the weak and the elderly, or sexual predators. As a result, it is difficult for many law enforcement officers to understand that the ‘Predator Mentality’ plays an integral role in the Winning Mind. To assist in developing an understanding of the positive aspects of the predator mentality let us look to the animal kingdom. When asked to list the positive traits of predatory animals, those traits and characteristics that allow them to be successful, officers list such qualities as: 2