Part 2 of a 3-part series
[Editor’s note: SHARE YOUR OWN OFFICER SURVIVAL TIPS! E-mail us at: editor@calibrepress.com or post your comments below. We’re gathering reader input and will share with officers across the country in a follow-up piece after this series.]
Earlier we shared the first five of 14 officer survival principles a seasoned lieutenant urges all officers to keep in mind and follow [Read Part 1 here]. Here are the next five:
- Use back-up help properly. Do not—repeat—do not work a call alone when your common sense tells you help is required to do it right. That basic principle means you do not push your way into a fight, domestic beef or other disturbance alone, even if you must hold back until back-up arrives.
It also means you do not stop a wanted felon or other known-dangerous subject by yourself, even if the possibility exists that he will escape before you can get there. You can almost always get him another time, with adequate help on hand to assist you.
Let your back-up know exactly what he is supposed to do to assist you. If you want cover, say so. If you want back-up to secure and search people while you cover, say so. And be a competent cover officer yourself. Find out what it is you’re expected to do, then carry out your role with absolute undivided attention. Share any knowledge or observations you may have that will shed additional light (and safety) on the situation.
- Beware of all hands. Remain conscious of what every paw present is up to. Inasmuch as it is your subject’s hands that are most likely to hurt you, be sure he keeps them in your view at all times. That means that you let him know that you want them kept out of his pockets and in your view at all times. Remain mindful that you probably cannot adequately watch more than a couple of subjects at a time. Get a cover officer to help with surveillance if you’re dealing with a group.
Be aware of the positioning and actions of your own hands, too. Keep them out of your pockets. Be sure they stay empty of anything you would hesitate to drop instantly. Keep yourself positioned so neither your hands nor any other part of your anatomy can be grabbed to pull you off balance. That means no reaching into occupied vehicles or into the pockets of subjects who are unrestrained and well-balanced themselves.
- Handcuff and search properly. Sounds incredibly basic, but this cardinal rule is still violated many times every day. Sometimes officers are lucky and get away with sloppiness. When their luck runs out, as is does for several peace officers each year, officers die needlessly.
It’s important (and forgotten often enough) to be worth covering one more time:
— Virtually all arrestees should be handcuffed.
— All intoxicated persons and emotionally disturbed subjects taken into custody should be handcuffed.
— Hands are cuffed securely behind the back, not in front.
— Handcuffs are, at best, temporary restraining devices, so detainees must be kept under visual observation.
— Always double-lock handcuffs.
— Handcuff before, not after, searching.
— Searches of clothing and the person are done from behind and at an angle to the individual with him kept off balance.
— Each person taken into custody should be searched at least three times—at the point of custody, before being placed into a vehicle for transport and before being booked or lodged (before handcuffs are removed). Each search is conducted with an increased degree of thoroughness.
- Don’t be a cowboy or a hero. The very nature of law enforcement will from time to time create legitimate heroes from individuals who had no intention of becoming one. No peace officer in his or her right mind needs to initiate unnecessary risks to seek such recognition.
The officer who cancels back-up before he’s absolutely positive he will not need it is being a cowboy. Going alone into a building after a burglar is equally foolish. So is driving like a maniac in a no-holds-barred over pursuit of a traffic violator. So, too, is charging into a bar fight without adequate cover.
- Use tactical withdrawal when the potential losses you face (such as your life or body part) far outweigh the gains to be won if you gut it out in the face of overwhelming odds.
Tactical withdrawal may mandate that you temporarily back off from the arrest of a bar fighter when his 122 drunk buddies tell you that you and your partner aren’t taking him anywhere. (Then you can lay back outside and call for plenty of help!) Or it may dictate that you pull out of a vehicle pursuit that is rapidly escalating in speed and danger.
No good cop likes to back down. But on very rare occasion, remaining in one piece to fight another day will be the better part of valor, not to mention plain good sense. When confronted with a potential tactical withdrawal situation, ask yourself: Is this situation worth losing some teeth for? Is it worth dying for? Then act appropriately on the answer.
NEXT: Four final officer survival basics to live by.
SHARE YOUR OWN OFFICER SURVIVAL TIPS! E-mail us at: editor@calibrepress.com or post your comments HERE. We’re gathering reader input and will share with officers across the country in a follow-up piece after this series.
