The Significance Of S.H.I.T.T.
Perhaps the most gratifying thing a police supervisor can hear is one of his officers telling another, “Yeah, the sarge really has his shit together,” or any of those other scatological allusions which convey the message that you are a master of your craft — and your troops recognize and respect it. How many times have you heard that statement applied to anyone during your career? Pretty rare, isn’t it? The best thing about wearing [...]
STREET LEVEL | Straight Talk On Supervision & Leadership
Recap. “Punishment” is only one of several aspects of discipline — frequently and wrongfully employed. “Context” is important. A violation, appearing clear-cut, may deserve mitigation, exoneration or even commendation. “Ink” should never dictate the level of discipline imposed. “Bad press” or departmental embarrassment decides far too many disciplinary actions. The [...]
Grey Looks Great on You
So, what’s with this ‘greyman’ concept? Well, on the surface, it sounds pretty simple – just blend in. When you look deeper and get more into the details, it gets interesting. Subscribing to the grey man/grey woman idea means a lot of different things, so let’s narrow it down [...]
ORGANIZATIONAL TERRORISTS | Is This A Life Worth Living?
I’m pretty sure every organization has them. They may be called countless different things depending on where you work, but I refer to them as “Organizational Terrorists.” No matter what the name, we all know them. They’re the ones sucking on the Big Gulp-sized container of Haterade — whining, sniveling [...]
Home Defense
Given current and emerging threats such as the open U.S. Southern border and crime surges throughout the major cities, law-abiding citizens have a commensurate and justified concern about rising home invasions. What are some recommended proactive measures to protect your home and family from such an undesired incident? Red cell, [...]
“HOW’S THAT AGAIN?” | A Failure To Communicate
I’m a seasoned, okay, salty 26-year veteran of two major California law enforcement agencies. I’ve worked many aspects of the job — corrections, K-9, narcotics, traffic, auto theft, community policing — the list goes on. But, I still work patrol and get enormous satisfaction out of that drive to jail. [...]
Being Mindful
Have you ever walked into a room on a mission to retrieve something important only to stand there and think, ‘What did I come in here for?” how many times have you held your keys and thought, ‘where the heck are my keys?’ Or, with glasses resting on your head, [...]
School Violence
"Sometimes we are responsible not because we are to blame, but because we are the only ones who can change it." - [...]
Incident Control
Recent events have proven that bad things can, and do, happen to good people. An increase in crime, including home invasions, attacks on vehicles, and other violent physical assaults, are not part of some fiction novel. Properties have been destroyed, and businesses are looted then burnt to the ground in [...]
TOLERANCE AS A PROACTIVE MEASURE
In a society that consists of various cultures and backgrounds, conflicting beliefs, personal opinions, and political viewpoints are inevitable. Such inevitability sometimes leads to heated discussions, which may lead to acts of physical violence. The Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of tolerance is the capacity for the practice of recognizing and respecting [...]
RULE #4 | Be Sure of Your Target and What’s Beyond
Rule #4 reads, "Be Sure of your target and what's beyond it." That's easy on a square range with a two-dimensional target in front of a tall earthen berm. Too easy. Maybe you are moving. Far more often, the target is not moving; it is just static. And there is [...]