Law enforcement use-of-force policies and training have focused mainly on officer safety, where officers have been allowed to use a level of force that an officer "reasonably believes necessary."

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Of course, once your officers have reviewed the new police and completed the training, you'll want to capture and track all their signatures on the matter, just like you do with your other policies and training modules.

Of course, your department should have a de-escalation policy that states when an officer should and should not attempt to de-escalate a situation. For example, most police departments will not attempt to de-escalate when a subject has a gun of any kind. But it should also have a decision tree that lets officers decide when they should de-escalate a situation rather than use force as the first resort.

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­ The main advantage of this design is that you can stun attackers from a greater distance (typically 15 to 20 feet / 4 to 6 meters). The disadvantage is that you only get one shot -- you have to wind up and re-pack the electrode wires, as well as load a new gas cartridge, each time you fire. Most Taser models also have ordinary stun-gun electrodes, in case the Taser electrodes miss the target.

With the right training management software, you should also be able to unify your training to your de-escalation policy, ensuring that everyone is receiving the same information. You can often find third-party content on police de-escalation techniques and ask another city to share their own policy with you on the matter.

In the past, officers have taken an aggressive approach to ending those incidents—usually involving the use of force and sometimes firearms. This can result in injury or death to the subject or the officer.

De-escalation is still a relatively new philosophy in law enforcement circles. Many officers are still arguing the "guardian versus warrior" model, but societal pressures and a lack of trust from local communities are pushing more departments into adopting the de-escalation mindset.

It also means reflecting back what they seem to be feeling, such as saying, "It feels like you're very angry right now." This shows that you're actually observing their own nonverbal communications.

Now police are being asked to use de-escalation techniques as a way to bring standoffs to a peaceful end without anyone getting hurt or the need for any kind of violence. While it's still a controversial topic within police circles, a large number of departments have begun incorporating police de-escalation training and seeing a major improvement in the number of use-of-force incidents, complaints against officers, and injuries and deaths.

Your nonverbal communication also shows you're engaging in active listening because you're making eye contact, you're nodding and leaning forward a little, you're sitting or standing still, and you're letting the other person speak without interrupting or rushing to fill gaps in the conversation.

You can also ask open-ended questions rather than yes-or-no questions. "How did you feel about that?" or "What happened next?"

It also showed that officers who completed eight hours of police de-escalation training received 26% fewer citizen complaints. There were also 28% fewer use-of-force incidents, and 36% fewer officer injuries.

And of course, use non-threatening words and statements. Rather than telling a subject to calm down or you'll arrest them, you can say things like, "I understand you're angry. I just want to listen to you and give you some options."

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Amnesty International reports that a number of governments routinely use stun weapons to extract confessions from political prisoners. These officials know that electrical torture leaves less evidence than many other methods. The shock from a stun weapon is extremely painful, but it doesn't leave an obvious wound. So, while stun guns might be relatively safe weapons when used correctly, they can be quite dangerous in the wrong hands.

Another 2020 study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) showed that procedural justice training (which includes de-escalation training) saw a 10% reduction in complaints filed against officers.

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PERF Executive Director Chuck Wexler told The Washington Post, “When we first began this whole journey, the conventional wisdom was: ‘Cops have to make split-second decisions — you’re going to get officers hurt.’ Now here we are in 2020 and you have a study that says not only was there a decline in use of force and citizen injury, but the biggest decline is in officer injuries.”

It's important to remember that de-escalation is a philosophy, not a process. However, there are certain de-escalation techniques that can help. De-escalation training teaches police officers to slow things down, create space, ask open-ended questions, build a rapport with subjects, and hold off reaching for their guns.

In early 2016, PERF published a report detailing 30 guiding principles on the use of force. The principles teach officers to de-escalate tense situations that involve unarmed people, and it looks like it's paying off.

According to a 2020 report by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), one form of de-escalation training run by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) reduced the use-of-force incidents for the Louisville Metro Police Department.

In this article, we'll look at what police de-escalation is, what are the benefits and elements of it, and an explanation of what's involved in police de-escalation training and techniques.

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De-escalation has traditionally been part of police training, but the average recruit only receives eight hours of police de-escalation training, compared to 58 hours of firearms training and 49 hours of defensive tactical training.

Some Taser guns have a built in shooter-identification system. When a police officer fires the Taser electrodes, the gun releases dozens of confetti-sized identification tags. These tags tell investigators which gun was fired, at what location. Some Taser guns also have a computer system that records the time and of every shot.

Nonverbal communication includes body language and body movement. Are you standing in a guarded position, hand hovering over your firearm? Or do you appear more relaxed with your hands at your side? Are you closing in aggressively on a subject, or are you backing away and keeping a safe distance between you and the subject?

Access expert guidance on police de-escalation training and techniques. We empower law enforcement agencies to prioritize peaceful conflict resolution.

Nonverbal communication is everything other than the words we speak – gestures, facial expressions, body language, as well as the tone of voice, volume, and inflections. Nonverbal communication influences the content of how, and how well, we communicate.

Verbal communication during de-escalation includes paraphrasing what a subject is saying. You're repeating what they said, but you're changing up the wording slightly. A subject who says, "No one listens to me!" you could paraphrase and say, "It must be hard to feel like no one is listening to you." This builds trust and rapport between you and the subject, allows for clarification, and forces them to listen as well.

The companies that make stun guns specify that the weapons should be used conservatively, only for self-defense or incapacitating an unruly person. Unfortunately, stun guns are commonly used as torture devices in many parts of the world.

Active listening means listening attentively to another person, withholding judgment, and paying close attention to what they're saying. There are also nonverbal and verbal components to active listening that serve as signals to the other person that you're listening. We'll discuss those shortly.

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Tasers are only one way to conduct current over greater distances. In the next section, we'll look a relatively new long-range stun weapon that doesn't use any wires at all.

You can manage your police policy and training program with PowerDMS software. Visit our website to learn more about implementing your own online police training program, including de-escalation training.

And you'll want to provide online training content so they can refresh their knowledge, learn new techniques, or even watch body cam videos from other departments to see their own police de-escalation techniques in action.

In essence, active listening means you're paying attention to what the other person is saying and not thinking about what you're going to say in response. Don't argue or interrupt, or convince them that they're wrong. Very often, angry people only want to feel listened to and be taken seriously.

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While online training can save time and money, police de-escalation training should be taught in-person, in real-world hands-on training sessions. Of course, you can supplement your in-person training with additional reading and videos on de-escalation, which can be made available on the PowerDMS training management software.

One of the biggest benefits of police de-escalation is reducing the need for use of force by police officers, as well as officer-involved shootings. It also greatly reduces the likelihood that officers will be hurt during a confrontation.

(Keeping a safe distance is one of the techniques they teach in de-escalation training so officers still have time to react if a subject lunges with a knife or a fist.)

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A successful de-escalation starts with your officers and their willingness to follow this philosophy and its techniques. That means they should have high self-awareness of their own emotional state and listening skills. An officer's emotional state will affect their interaction with others. Being able to show a calm, relaxed face and body language will go a long way in defusing a tense situation.

The electrodes are affixed with small barbs so that they will grab onto an attacker's clothing. When the electrodes are attached, the current travels down the wires into the attacker, stunning him in the same way as a conventional stun gun.

Following the number of high-profile officer-involved shootings and deaths, there have been increased calls by cities and citizens for a change in the way police respond to situations, like domestic calls, suspects armed with knives, or people having a mental health crisis.

One popular variation on the conventional stun-gun design is the Taser gun. Taser guns work the same basic way as ordinary stun guns, except the two charge electrodes aren't permanently joined to the housing. Instead, they are positioned at the ends of long conductive wires, attached to the gun's electrical circuit. Pulling the trigger breaks open a compressed gas cartridge inside the gun. The expanding gas builds pressure behind the electrodes, launching them through the air, the attached wires trailing behind. (This is the same basic firing mechanism as in a BB gun.)

They should also practice regular self-care. A healthy lifestyle impacts a person's mental health, emotional state, and personal confidence. Your officers should already be practicing self-care and living healthy, as it will only help their de-escalation technique.

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Verbal communication is everything we say, but not how we say it. That is, tone of voice, volume, timbre, and so on are all nonverbal elements, but the words you use and what you say, are verbal communication elements.

The goal is to defuse a situation and get subjects to make smart choices because they recognize that their incidents can end in a way other than being shot or taking the life of an officer. By writing your own department policy, training on the different techniques we've discussed, and continuing to promote this philosophy, your department could also see a dramatic reduction in use-of-force incidents, police complaints, and even lawsuits and insurance claims.

The San Francisco police department created a police de-escalation training program that saw a 24% decrease in the use of force in 2019 compared with 2018. And before that, there was a 35% decline from 2015 - 2018. And in 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law that required police de-escalation training, something the Berkeley and San Diego police departments had already implemented.

The point of police de-escalation training is to teach officers to favor a guardian mindset over a warrior mindset, shifting police philosophy to protector instead of fighter. The training teaches officers to rely on communication and negotiation tactics over physical force as a way to convince a subject to avoid physical violence or self-harm. Here are a few elements of de-escalation that are taught in departments all over the U.S.

Based on the different cities implementing police de-escalation training, there is a significant reduction in use-of-force complaints, officer-involved shootings, and injuries to police officers or citizens. These results can go a long way to improving community relations, but can also reduce the risk of lawsuits, liability claims, and insurance payouts.

According to a Foster City, California police de-escalation training presentation, de-escalation is "intended to escape escalations of conflict" and "reduce conflict before it develops."

De-escalation is a process designed to prevent conflict escalation and, ideally, resolve conflicts peacefully. Some subjects may be committed to escalating the conflict, so specific measures must be taken to avoid that. Ultimately, de-escalation should reduce a person's agitation and the potential for violence.