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A citizen’s introduction to police work
Special to the Daily Mail
A couple of weeks ago I attended “Donuts with a Cop” at the Community Center.
I met some very nice people and several police officers. I think everyone had a good time.
I recommend that they rename the event in the future, because there were no donuts. The officers informed me when I inquired about the lack of donuts, that they are not eating donuts in public anymore.
While at the event, I found out about The Citizens Police Academy, where residents of Nevada can find out what it is like in the day of a police officer, also how and why the police and sheriff’s office are run the way they are.
I decided to sign up. After all, who doesn’t want to ride in the “front” seat of a police car? After I told my husband what I had done, he didn’t want to be left out so he signed up as well.
We attended our first session on April 4, at the new Nevada Police Department. There are 10 people enrolled at this time. If you haven’t been inside the new police station I recommend you go. We watched films, met the Chief of Police Casey Crane and two officers; Lt. Bastow and Officer Champion.
We were given a notebook to follow throughout the course and had a question and answer session with no holds barred and all our questions were answered. We were also given a tour of the workings of the department, including the holding cells and a police car complete with weaponry and safety gear. It was a very informative and enjoyable experience.
Session 2
Then on April 11, during our second session, we met at the Vernon County Sheriff’s Department and met Sheriff Jason Mosher, Lt. Cole and other department officials who man the various sections of the department.
We were allowed once again to have an in depth question and answer period. There were questions regarding the operations, policies, check-in, visitations, payroll, politics, food service, legal holding of prisoners, training of officers, drugs in Vernon County and much more. We then toured the entire facility with the exception of occupied cells. We were also served refreshments made in their kitchen.
We are all looking forward to our next experience April 18 and learning more about our community from a new perspective.
Session 3 April 19,
Interactive traffic stops
This was fun! Tonight we were part of an Interactive Traffic Stop. Traffic stops and domestic violence are the most dangerous of the jobs officers have because of the volatility and emotional instability of people in these situations. They never really know what they are stepping into until they get there.
We were taught to keep our hand at a ready position to defend ourselves, but still approach the person with a friendly appearance to keep the situation under control at all times. Know where your gun is at all times.
Always pay good attention to the surroundings and the temperament of the situation. Pay attention to the reactions and the eyes of the perpetrator. Then go with your gut instincts. You can’t be too cautious.
Don’t tell the person in a traffic stop to get out of the car; it makes you more vulnerable to attack. Stay in control of the situation at all times. Don’t get involved in argumentative battles with the person.
When a person is pulled over, it is illegal for them to leave the scene before being released by the officer. It is considered a legal detention and your legal right of movement has been stopped. (Traffic Stop).
Verbal and physical or body language are threats and are considered illegal. You can be arrested.
You can be pulled over for several reasons including reasonable suspicion that criminal activity is occurring (Probable cause).
DWI testing can be done in one or more of four ways; urine, blood (most accurate), breath or saliva. If you refuse to cooperate with the officer at a stop or scene of a crime, you will be forcibly detained. Again, know where your gun is at all times.
When police stop a vehicle and run the license, even though they have computers in their cars, it still goes through dispatch to check alias in all 50 states.
We were each given a traffic stop scenario to follow. There were nine students and each started by sitting in the police car as if pulling over a vehicle with expired tags. Cpl. Hansen acted as the driver of the stopped vehicle.
| • | There was an officer abduction where the officer was caught off guard after the driver stepped out of the vehicle. |
| • | One student had a pull away driver, leaving the officer to decide what to do next. |
| • | One of the officers approached a vehicle to find the driver having seizures and had to call for back-up and an ambulance. |
| • | Another scenario was an obnoxious driver trying to control the situation and get the officer mad or in a debate over the legalities of the stop. |
| • | In another case the officer was tricked by the driver who managed to run from the scene. The officers immediately called for back-up. |
| • | One time the man in the car was pulled over and pretending to sleep in the passenger seat when the officer approached and questioned him, he pulled a gun and shot the officer. |
| • | Another officer stopped a car, the driver immediately got out of his car and started toward the officer. He was waving a cell phone at the officer, but it was dark and the lights made it difficult for the officer to see what the man had in his hand. After asking the man to stop and get back into his vehicle several times, the officer then had the option of shooting or tazing the man. |
| • | And then there was the one where the driver stepped out of his vehicle, dropped his license and proceeded to crawl under his vehicle to retrieve it. When the officer tried to stop him he crawled to the other side, ran around the back of his vehicle and stole the police car. |
It was all in fun and still very informative, but did bring us to a realization of the dangers in a simple traffic stop that our officers do all day every day.
They keep in mind at all times, “I’m going home today.” This is not a job for just anyone; you really have to be dedicated to serving and saving the people of the community.