Are We Misusing SWAT?
In his article “Rise of the Warrior Cop” (Wall Street Journal, July 22, 2013) Radley Balko offers the opinion that, for a variety of reasons, some law enforcement agencies have become too militarized and are using SWAT resources in incidents not justified in their usage. Several American COP readers, who I happen to know to be excellent SWAT Commanders with their current agencies, asked if I’d read the article and comment on it here. One [...]
Are We Our Own Worst Enemies?
In our Helter-Skelter quest to have all-things-cop be faster, brighter, more powerful and — let’s not forget — cooler, have we ended up making life more complicated? I’d have to say, “yes” — in some [...]
Thinking Before Leaping
In 2010 there was an almost 40-percent increase from 2009 in the number of officers killed in the line of duty. While this seems to be a big increase, sadly it’s about the average for [...]
Police Unions
Political Powerhouses? There I was, barely 22 years old and about to embark on my police career. Bright eyed and bushy tailed, I was incredibly naïve and gullible. It was a Friday, my academy classmates [...]