Read the article and state your thoughts here. http://www.leoaffairs.com/featured/new-nypd-training-policy-close-your-eyes-and-breathe/

I remember reading about that somewhere else. It's ridiculous that they would train them to do that(or attempt to train). At least they got paid overtime for that bulls***.

Pretty sure none of the cops would do that, that's stupid.

Yeah sure, someone is robbing a bank and shooting innocent children, "Just close your eyes and take a deep breath".   

Opponents of this are just equivocating on "close your eyes." 

 

This concept doesn't mean stand there with your eyes closed. It just means to take a moment and try to think about what is going on and what you're going to do, given the opportunity to do so. Even a moment of thought can prevent a poor decision, something NYPD officers are quite familiar with doing. 

Edited February 24, 201511 yr by SIR_Sergeant

Take a moment to think about it... oh wait you've just been shot... yeah no. Cops have a split-second to read and react to the information they gather. Taking any longer could get them or someone else seriously injured or killed....

I'm in favour of this. Now OBVIOUSLY it's not going to be used when there is a bank robbery or a life threatening situation. This won't be used in a situation which can have fatal consequences, it will be used at the officers discretion. I think when dealing with difficult people, people who are being confrontational or aggressive, it will be quite a good idea to step back, reassess and try and de-escalate the situation. The NYPD choking situation to me seemed like an excellent example of cops which over-reacted, they felt he was being aggressive so they responded with force.

 

It should show also that they are attempting to help ease tensions between the community and officers, which is particularly strained. If an officer feels under pressure because of someone they're dealing with, they can be more hostile, which in turn makes the suspect more hostile. If an officer instead shows an attempt to de-escalate the situation, by pausing and then re-evaluating that can make a difference. The only thing I dislike is the "closing the eyes", that seems pathetic, they're not meditating, they're doing a job. Plus it breaks the visual communication between the officer and the suspect.

 

Good on the NYPD though, there will be a lot of hostility from officers because they don't like change, especially from De Blasio, but its worth giving it a go anyway.  

I've read it yesterday and laugh everytime I think about it;

http://nypost.com/2015/02/23/cops-instructed-to-close-eyes-during-tense-situations/

http://nypost.com/2015/02/24/nypd-using-road-house-movie-to-teach-cops-how-to-be-nice/

 

HAHAHA!

 

this movie would be way better: 

 

 

 

I see nothing wrong with this policy.

< snip >

Edited June 23, 20241 yr by tobeymaguire

Really? If you are in the military, let's say, and are in a Humvee just about to enter a tough incident and you know it, you're not going to head straight in with your eyes shut breathing like you're in therapy.

 

Okay that's a bad example, but if you are in a situation that could be potentially fatal, you won't have time to stop and think about what's going to happen unless you are some superhero. And you're not, you can't slow time. You have to make your decision near-instantly, you have to deal with the pressure. You can breath but you can't stop to close your eyes, pray to mommy, think for a good few minutes, and then make your decision.

 

Officer: Hey man how's it going.

Man: I got a gun man! Step back! *points gun*

Officer: Hey man gimme a second I gotta close my eyes and think.

Man: Oh sure thing man *gun lowers*

well, police don't deal with a gun-wielding serial terrorist child rapists on every call. Imagine: a cop responds to a call and meets an angry and dirty-mouthed lady who begins to insult him and screaming at him. Being a rude and hard person this cop goes angry, hits her, cuffs her, and so on. This may be not against the law but it certainly looks bad. 

 

I respect a cop who can smile, calmly say some words, and resolve the incident peacefully. Police if here to prevent crimes and protect and serve, so no need to get violent at everyone. Unfortunately, many officers are violent and brutal men, and never tend calm to insults, according to my experience. 

Edited February 24, 201511 yr by Hastings

Really? If you are in the military, let's say, and are in a Humvee just about to enter a tough incident and you know it, you're not going to head straight in with your eyes shut breathing like you're in therapy.

 

Okay that's a bad example, but if you are in a situation that could be potentially fatal, you won't have time to stop and think about what's going to happen unless you are some superhero. And you're not, you can't slow time. You have to make your decision near-instantly, you have to deal with the pressure. You can breath but you can't stop to close your eyes, pray to mommy, think for a good few minutes, and then make your decision.

 

Officer: Hey man how's it going.

Man: I got a gun man! Step back! *points gun*

Officer: Hey man gimme a second I gotta close my eyes and think.

Man: Oh sure thing man *gun lowers*

The problem here is that people are misunderstanding what this policy actually means. It's not saying that officers are required to stand there and close their eyes, that's retarded. There are a million different scenarios that can occur from day to day policing, and this policy varies depending on the specific circumstances of that scenario. An officer stopping to think and the suspect complying to it isn't realistic.

 

What this policy means is that officers should take the time to calm down. When in a pursuit or altercation of some sort, officers shouldn't just take immediate action. Officers should take a moment to think about what they're doing before they do it. Like I've already said, this doesn't mean that the officer is required to literally stand there and close his/her eyes; again, that's retarded.

 

If I'm a police officer chasing a suspect, and the suspect is reaching into his pants, my first instinct is to pull my gun and prepare to shoot him. What this policy says is that officers shouldn't just act, they should think for a moment about alternatives to a scenario.

What this policy means is that officers should take the time to calm down. When in a pursuit or altercation of some sort, officers shouldn't just take immediate action. Officers should take a moment to think about what they're doing before they do it. Like I've already said, this doesn't mean that the officer is required to literally stand there and close his/her eyes; again, that's retarded.

 

If I'm a police officer chasing a suspect, and the suspect is reaching into his pants, my first instinct is to pull my gun and prepare to shoot him. What this policy says is that officers shouldn't just act, they should think for a moment about alternatives to a scenario.

I don't think a pursuit is a good time to take moment and think about what to do next, the cops priority depending on the situation is to catch/stop the suspect. When you're in a pursuit and the suspect reaches for their waistband, you really can't take the chance. It's a split second decision, and I would be prepared and pull out my weapon, rather than use that time to think. Doesn't mean they have to shoot, but better to be prepared imo. I do understand they should train them to do this in less stressful situations. Like a person intoxicated in public, disputes between people, although those can get ugly real quick. But training them to think before being prepared in a more stressful situation like a pursuit, or a suspect trying to assault them seems like a bad idea.

Edited February 24, 201511 yr by BlackJesus1

I don't see a problem with training officers to take a moment to take a breath and re-evaluate the situation at hand. 

Edited February 24, 201511 yr by McAwesome6934

(...)

 

If I'm a police officer chasing a suspect, and the suspect is reaching into his pants, my first instinct is to pull my gun and prepare to shoot him. What this policy says is that officers shouldn't just act, they should think for a moment about alternatives to a scenario.

 

In this specific example I can assure you that no dept. it the world is able to change this kind of reaction during such short course. It takes years of intensive training to change or develop such an instinct to work under extremely high pressure and take conscious decisions, improve shooting accuracy etc. But I fully agree that Officers should be trained better in terms of psychology, martial arts to be able to keep 100% of control in their hands. The case of Mr Garner (which is the main cause of all this BS) is a good example to learn from - he was not an extremely dangerous perp, he could be talked out the situation, maybe maced a lil bit and, what's most important, overpowered without choking (batons are great to control perps arms). They overacted because of lack of more advanced skills to handle the situation. This is the issue here I believe. Give'em tools, skills to handle the street and they won't be so stressed while working under bad conditions. There's nothing to deliberate when you are not capable of doing your job 100% professionally.

Well police brutality is a problem in America, so at least they're trying. But the closing the eyes thing is ridiculous. What they should have said is just calm down.

Close your eyes and relax.

 

*punch*

Policing is certainly a highly stressful job, so this advice could be useful in some circumstances. Giving this as generic advice to be used in any circumstance seems a bit silly to me, though.

Really? If you are in the military, let's say, and are in a Humvee just about to enter a tough incident and you know it, you're not going to head straight in with your eyes shut breathing like you're in therapy.

 

Okay that's a bad example, but if you are in a situation that could be potentially fatal, you won't have time to stop and think about what's going to happen unless you are some superhero. And you're not, you can't slow time. You have to make your decision near-instantly, you have to deal with the pressure. You can breath but you can't stop to close your eyes, pray to mommy, think for a good few minutes, and then make your decision.

 

Officer: Hey man how's it going.

Man: I got a gun man! Step back! *points gun*

Officer: Hey man gimme a second I gotta close my eyes and think.

Man: Oh sure thing man *gun lowers*

Here's the thing: In the US, the way this *actually* tends to go is:

Officer: What are you doing?

Man doing something that looks mildly shady: Just ---

Officer: *draws* Don't move! *shoots* Stop resisting!

...later...

Police department: "That man had XYZ arrest record, so was clearly a risk. The officer made a split-second decision because he felt his life was at risk. Policing is a very dangerous job, and the cop had the right to go home for dinner."

"Police have to make split-second decisions" is claimed with *every* police shooting, even ones where the person had not done anything that could possibly convince someone who spent even two seconds thinking about it that they were a threat. Police are fond of trotting that out to justify killing people who have done nothing wrong, on the premise that it's more important that the cop make it out alive than that they take the time to make sure they don't kill an innocent person. Frankly, if stopping to think means a few more police die but fewer innocent people are killed by police, that's a good tradeoff -- a cop signs up for the job knowing it's risky, while the innocent people who are beaten or killed by police never signed up for that.

There is no reason why a department should have to remind someone to think before they act. I am not yet a LEO but isn't that a basic requirement?