NCJ Number
232357
Journal
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Volume: 79 Issue: 9 Dated: September 2010 Pages: 15-21
Date Published
September 2010
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article describes the Daviess County, Kentucky, Sheriff's Office effective firearms training program.
Abstract
The Daviess County (Kentucky), Sheriff's Office developed and implemented firearms training program that consists of two major components: a limited-scale range firing every month and an annual 2-day event. The monthly event is held over the course of 2 days at the Owensboro Police Department. Scheduled exercises consist of basic firearms skills and feature a mix of both dry and live fire. The agency conducts the annual event at the Kentucky National Guard training facility in Greenville. Focusing on active-shooter scenarios as the basic vehicle for instruction, the 2-day training begins with day one focusing on individual officers placed into a situation involving a choice between waiting for backup while an active shooter continues or entering the building alone to try to locate and stop the killer. The second day simulates officers' arrival at the scene. As of May 2009, everyone in the department authorized to carry a firearm completed this training. While the conducted training takes a lot of work, officer feedback has been positive. The overall response has been that the agency has implemented a successful, cost-effective firearms training program for its personnel.