Ralph Mroz We require officers to be in shape to start their careers; why not require them to stay that way? A subject which has been discussed vigorously in police circles is that of career physical fitness standards for police officers. As disheartening as it is, some of the young men and women coming into police service today are in such poor shape that standards have had to be dramatically lowered in many places. Nonetheless, the idea has stayed alive,…
The Bureau of Justice Assistance National Training and Technical Assistance Center (BJA NTTAC) released a checklist which provides standard best practices which agencies of all sizes can implement in their crime analysis units. The checklist includes questions and recommendations which may help an agency increase the unit’s effectiveness and capacity. Specifically, it includes recommendations for staffing, communication, crime analysis products, technology, and resources. Visit https://tinyurl.com/bmwdfjxa to view the checklist.
The 28th Annual Report on the Latest Advances in Ballistic Armor Technology and Design Police and Security News Editorial Staff Image by Amaynut It comes as no surprise that the National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ’s) revised ballistic-resistant body armor standard 0101.07 is still awaiting implementation. Announced back in 2018, the NIJ had planned to release a revised version of the current ballistic-resistant body armor standard in late 2020. The new draft standard was developed through an NIJ Special Technical Committee…
Larry E. Holtz, Esq. Community Caretaking and Home Entries In Caniglia v. Strom (US 5-17-21), the United States Supreme Court recently addressed the question of whether law enforcement’s community caretaking duties create a stand-alone doctrine which justifies warrantless searches and seizures in the home. The answer, according to the Court, is NO! Here, the Court refused to recognize the “community caretaking” rule as a “freestanding” Fourth Amendment category. During an argument with his wife, Edward Caniglia placed a handgun on…
Real Stories of Genuine Absurdity James L. McClinton, Ph.D. What happened to cakes with a secret color inside?… A New Hampshire man has turned himself in to police after detonating 80 pounds of explosives as part of a gender reveal party held in a quarry. The explosion reportedly set off earthquakes in the area and the blast could be heard from across the state line. Police in Kingston (near the Massachusetts border) received reports of a loud explosion and responded…
RAMESH NYBERG Making a Difference This column is dedicated to the victims and families of the Surfside, Florida, condo collapse. Is it weird what I’m feeling? Here I am in Boston with my wife on vacation, enjoying time with my son, his wife and my 18-month-old grandson, and I suddenly have an urge to be in Surfside, picking through rubble and recovering victims of this disastrous building collapse. They say that police work “gets in your blood” and never goes…
Published by the Police Executive Research Forum, this toolkit discusses how first-line supervisors are essential to critical incident response. When major events occur, the first officers on-scene will look to their sergeants for direction, and the first-line supervisor will likely be the incident commander on-scene during event response. The toolkit includes topics such as preparation before a critical incident; how to handle a critical incident; and what to do following a critical incident. The toolkit was designed with the input…