Officer-Involved Shootings - Effects, Suggested Procedures and Treatment (From Police Selection and Training, P 159-174, 198 6, John C Yuille, ed. - See NCJ-104142)

• NCJ Number: 104152
• Author(s): J G Stratton
• Date Published: 1986
• Length: 16 pages
• Sale Source: Martinus Nijhoff Publishing
• Language: English
• Country: Netherlands

Annotation

Surveys of police officers involved in shootings, or other traumatic incidents involving loss of human life (crime victims, partners), show that most experience strong emotional reactions to the event.

Abstract

Common reactions include flashbacks, survivor guilt, and anxiety relating to personal safety or job security. Further, a number of officers exhibit symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder including numbed responsiveness, constricted affect, sleep disorder including numbed responsiveness, constricted affect, sleep disturbance, or memory impairment. Police departments can establish effective methods for dealing with traumatic incidents for officers through training and guidelines in the use of deadly force, through supportive attitudes of supervisors, and by encouraging troubled officers to seek help. In the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, training is balanced among officer survival techniques, communication skills, ethics, and law. In addition, the department has developed policy guidelines for officers involved in shootings that demonstrate concern and support for the officer's welfare. Finally, officers participate in an emotional debriefing that explains department policies, reviews common reactions to shootings, and permits the officer to freely discuss the incident and his emotional reactions to it. 2 tables, 1 figure and 5 references.