Danger of Side Mirror Lights

Joseph J. Hawk, Jr
Pittston Township Police, Pennsylvania
Side mirror lights offer great warning power and high visibility lighting at a 'different' angle. They are a safety plus for the responding officer, especially in the ever-crucial intersection, where you need to be seen. However, for the officer that is on the traffic stop they may not be so safe. Picture this: You are working the graveyard shift, you pull over a vehicle for a minor infraction. As we all know, we have no idea what is going through that driver's mind. Are they ready to run? Worse yet, are they willing and ready to try and take your life? You activate your emergency lighting (including your side mirror lights) and they pull over waiting and watching for you to get out.
The mirror lights are great in doing what they were designed to do. However, may pose a serious problem on traffic stops. That driver's side mirror light is an indicator that you exited your patrol car. It moves with the position of your driver’s door. Whether they plan on taking off after you exit your car or doing you harm, this just may give them that tactical advantage. My suggestion is to talk to whomever you have to, not to get ride of mirror lights all together but have them put on a separate switch, a kill switch when the vehicle is in park or an over ride when your take downs and/or side spot light is activated just to name a few. I believe that if you present this as an officer safety issue, your department should have no problem with the change. Stay Safe my fellow Brothers and Sisters!

Check Your Six On Traffic Stops

Submitted by:
Officer Mark McCracken, Mobile (Ala.) Police Department

On traffic stops, I glance towards the rear of my car as I exit to make both my initial and secondary approaches. I'm not just checking for traffic. I'm also making sure that a family member or other acquaintance of the driver is not pulling up behind me. I take my look back while I'm getting out of my car, not while approaching the subject's vehicle that I stopped. Then, I keep my eyes on the driver and the other occupants of vehicle, watching their actions and their body language.

5 Tips for winning a ground fight

In a Police Marksman article, trainer Larry Lein shared five basic but powerful principles that can help you win a ground fight. Here’s a summary:
1. Stay calm. Remember that through your training, you have “been there and done that.” Fighting on the ground is not new for you. You know what to do and you’ve practiced it, so if you go to the ground, perform, don’t panic.
2. Relax and breathe. If you forget to breathe and cause yourself to suffer unnecessarily from oxygen deprivation, your knowledge and skills will be of little use after 30 to 50 seconds. Breathe.
3. Stay constantly aware of the positional relationship between your weapon and the suspect.
When fighting on the ground, you can easily find yourself ending up in a position that basically “offers” your firearm to the suspect and for all you know, getting that gun may be his only goal. Always know where your weapon is in relation to the suspect and your body position and make every effort to protect it. Goes without saying, but conscious effort may be needed to remember this in the heat of battle.
4. Stay in a face-to-face orientation with the suspect.
Don’t turn your back on a suspect. Simple. Serious.
5. Remember to use your feet and legs. These can be very powerful in a fight and can be used in a variety of ways, from delivering blows to controlling the suspect. Keep this in mind during your physical workouts. Leg strength can be a tremendous asset in a ground fight.

Cleaning Your Auto Pistol

Sgt Jim Williams (ret.),
Memphis (Tenn.) Police Department
As a retired detective sergeant and a former police training instructor, I can assure you that it is not necessary to field strip police automatic pistols to unload them fully. There are TWO steps which MUST be taken — done in the SAME order every time — as follows:
(1) Remove the supply of ammunition: take out the magazine, AND THEN,
(2) Empty the chamber of the last round. Lock the slide open and look down through the gun to verify the magazine is indeed fully removed.
If you do this backwards, you will RELOAD the chamber and WRONGLY believe you have unloaded the gun. YOU HAVE JUST LOADED THE CHAMBER AGAIN if done in reverse order.
This is not only the procedure to empty your own carry gun, but ALSO the procedure to unload the auto pistols you seize in making arrests, handling evidence, etc.
I can just imagine thinking you have to field strip an auto pistol in the field on the trunk lid of your patrol car every time you seize one in making arrests; you will have gun parts rolling off the trunk into the street.
REMOVE THE MAGAZINE FIRST. THEN EMPTY THE CHAMBER NEXT. Lock the slide open on an empty gun to prove your work.

National Law Enforecement Memorial

The National Law Enforcement Memorial stands as a reminder all year, but for one week in May, it becomes the center of the universe for thousands of officers, families, friends, and ordinary citizens who mourn the loss of our law enforcement warriors.

Although increased efforts to keep officers' names off the memorial wall have been successful to a degree, the ultimate goal of "no officers lost" sadly remains just a goal, not a reality. We will not forget and we will NOT give up the fight .

For Poice Week: Killed In The Line Of Duty

By Dan Marcou.

They always knew they could be
They never thought they would be
God knows none ever should be
Killed in the line of duty

Some made their final stand
Their profession’s last demand
They fell with gun in hand
Killed in the line duty

A routine to many a cop
Some made one final stop
Someone’s Mom or Pop
Killed in the line of duty

Others answered one last call
To a robbery, theft, or brawl
They arrived only to fall
Killed in the line of duty

Some were dressed in brown, some blue
Some in gray, and plain clothes too
Some were dressed like me and you
Killed in the line of duty

May their souls be forever blessed
For they who are now at rest
Died doing what they loved best
Killed in the line of duty

Forgotten they never could be
Forgotten they never should be
Thought they never would be
Killed in the line of duty

God bless all those who fell
They are missed and loved so well
Let us pray and toll the bell
Those killed in the line of duty
Amen

KEEP SUSPECTS IN THE DARK

When arresting or detaining a subject, think about what kind of information he or she will be exposed to. If you're placing suspects in your squad car, don't give them the opportunity to learn about the full nature of the investigation. Here are some things to keep in mind:
If you have a computer or radio in your cruiser (as I'm sure most of us do), turn the computer monitor off and turn off or mute the radio as well. This will prevent the suspect from gathering information on the process and current stage of the investigation.
Don't give the subject the chance to know how you and other cops at the scene are operating — don't let them hear our radio traffic and prevent them from viewing updated call history on your computer screen.
These communications tools there here to help us, not help the suspect or allow them to interfere with our investigation.
Let the subject sit with the fear of the unknown, setting the stage for your interview or interrogation later on.
Keeping an individual your car is usually the only place on scene to confine a subject, and placing multiple subjects in several different squad might be necessary so they can not all conjure up the same story.
We need to control our environment — don't forget that includes our squad cars as well.

The one-rep equipment check

Before every officer goes on duty they should check their equipment to make sure that it is in proper working order. When you do this, do it in the manner that you will use it. For instance, when checking your handcuffs, practice the proper way to remove the cuffs from your duty belt, the proper way to hold the cuffs and simulate handcuffing a subject. If you carry a baton, practice properly drawing the baton, striking with it and smoothly re-holstering it.

Each one of these acts only takes only a few seconds, costs zero dollars, helps you retain your muscle memory, and gets you mentally prepared for the start of your shift. During a five-day workweek, you will have performed five repetitions with each piece of your equipment. In a month you will have performed more than 20 repetitions, and by the end of the year you will have completed hundreds of repetitions. When practicing, don’t forget to mentally review your department’s policy on using each piece of equipment.

5 legal reminders for an officer-involved shooting

At a recent Force Science Certification Course, student Scott Wood, a police defense attorney and General Counsel for the National Tactical Officers Association, made his business card available to other students during a break, pointing out that the back of the card listed five things officers should keep in mind if they’re involved in a shooting. Here’s the list:

1. Remember your constitutional right to remain silent (Fifth Amendment, U.S. Constitution).

2. You should consider retaining a lawyer knowledgeable in this area of the law.

3. Any statement you give may be used against you in a subsequent criminal, administrative or civil proceeding. Make sure you are psychologically ready before giving it.

4. Regardless of whether you have retained a lawyer, when your initial statement is given, make sure you have been ordered to give that statement by a superior officer.

5. Remember that the law in the area of use of force is evolving. You have a constitutional right to legal representation (Sixth Amendment, U.S. Constitution).

Keep suspects in the dark

Submitted by: Officer Joseph Boehlke, Milwaukee Police Department

When arresting or detaining a subject, think about what kind of information he or she will be exposed to. If you're placing suspects in your squad car, don't give them the opportunity to learn about the full nature of the investigation. Here are some things to keep in mind:
If you have a computer or radio in your cruiser (as I'm sure most of us do), turn the computer monitor off and turn off or mute the radio as well. This will prevent the suspect from gathering information on the process and current stage of the investigation.
Don't give the subject the chance to know how you and other cops at the scene are operating — don't let them hear our radio traffic and prevent them from viewing updated call history on your computer screen.
These communications tools there here to help us, not help the suspect or allow them to interfere with our investigation.
Let the subject sit with the fear of the unknown, setting the stage for your interview or interrogation later on.
Keeping an individual your car is usually the only place on scene to confine a subject, and placing multiple subjects in several different squad might be necessary so they can not all conjure up the same story.
We need to control our environment — don't forget that includes our squad cars as well.

Navigating the junk food maze

Let's face it, cops live on fast food. It's one of the many reasons our health often deteriorates the longer we stay on the job.
Instead, buy a copy of David Zinczenko’s book "Eat This, Not That" and put it in your patrol bag, briefcase, or desk drawer. Zinczenko and his staff at Men's Health magazine have put together a series of small, fun-to-read books (lots of pictures!) detailing the good and bad food choices at most fast food places, chain restaurants, and even at your mom’s holiday dinner table. Trust me, some of those “healthy” choices you thought you were making will turn out to be surprisingly bad for you, and more than a few of those items you’ve been avoiding at the drive-thru window will turn out to be reasonable choices that will contribute to the healthy lifestyle that is essential to your survival on the street.