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White Paper Cites Dangerous Myths Of Restrictive Use of Force Policies

A major new white paper from a leading risk-management organization vigorously rebuts reform advocates who are pushing for tighter restrictions on police use of force than the standard required by the US Supreme Court. The 22-page paper, issued by the California-based group Lexipol, warns that some key arguments in favor of stricter force policies are,...
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New Court Decision: Must De-Escalation Be Tried First Before Force?

After a half-naked man in the throes of excited delirium died following a struggle with sheriff’s deputies, his widow alleged in a federal civil rights legal action that: the officers should not have used any force against him until they first attempted de-escalation techniques; their “excessive” force-first actions violated legal protections for the disabled and...
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“Escape Clause” Needed In Use of Force Policies

Does your department’s use-of-force policy allow officers to deviate from it in unanticipated but reasonable ways? Such an “escape hatch” provision is critical because officers may not always be able to conform to policy, despite their best intentions, according to an article by Jamie Borden in Vegas Beat, a publication of the Las Vegas Police...
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New Study Explores Link Between CEW Policies, Police Shootings

In a new study that carries important caveats, a research team of criminologists has found that agencies with the most permissive CEW policies–allowing deployment against even passive resisters–have significantly lower rates of fatal officer-involved shootings than agencies with highly restrictive policies. “As the researchers themselves point out, this study does not necessarily prove that a...
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Is the 21-Foot Rule Still Valid When Dealing with an Edged Weapon? (Part 2)

Part 2 of a 2-Part Series [EDITOR’S NOTE: For the record, the 21-Foot Rule, when accurately stated, says that in the time it takes the average officer to recognize a threat, draw his sidearm and fire 2 rounds at center mass, an average subject charging at the officer with an edged weapon can cover a...
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Is The 21-Foot Rule Still Valid When Dealing With An Edged Weapon? (Part 1)

Part 1 of a 2-Part Series For more than 20 years now, a concept called the 21-Foot Rule has been a core component in training officers to defend themselves against edged weapons. Originating from research by Salt Lake City trainer Dennis Tueller and popularized by the Street Survival Seminar and the seminal instructional video “Surviving...
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