August 2017

Office of Justice Programs Releases Toolkit to Aid Police Response to Children Exposed to Violence

Acting Assistant Attorney General Alan R. Hanson recently announced the launch of the Enhancing Police Responses to Children Exposed to Violence toolkit. The toolkit is designed to equip law enforcement professionals with trauma informed, developmentally appropriate tools to effectively respond to children who have been exposed to violence. Funded by the Office of Justice Programs’ Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), the toolkit contains protocols, checklists and other field-tested and research informed resources to enable law enforcement leaders…


Officer Nearly Dies After Accidental Overdose

It took four doses of Narcan® to revive an East Liverpool, Ohio, police officer recently in the aftermath of a traffic stop. Officer Chris Green inadvertently got a small amount of fentanyl on his hand after a pat-down and began to suffer its effects after returning to the station; a fellow officer administered one dose at the station and staff at a nearby hospital gave him three additional doses following admission. Guidance for all first responders on best practices in…


Just Published Study: Autistic Individuals’ Interaction with Police

A new study about police interactions with autistic individuals who are on the autism spectrum disorder was published in the June issue of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders. The following is a summary of that research. The Canadian study examined 284 Ontario (Canada) teens and adult caregivers over an 18 month period. The study, conducted by Tint, Palucka, Bradley, Weiss, and Lunsky, was a collaborative effort between Canada’s largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, the Centre for Addictions…


Best Practices, Guidance and Case Studies for Using Social Media in Public Safety Exercises

New U.S. Department of Homeland Security Report Shares Best Practices, Guidance and Case Studies for Using Social Media in Public Safety Exercises The Department of Homeland Security has released a new report, Best Practices for Incorporating Social Media into Exercises, which seeks to do the following: discuss best practices for consideration when integrating social media into exercises, including objectives for doing so (e.g., using social media for communications or leveraging information from social media to support operational decision-making); discuss social…