Fundamental Principles of Force Science

The past several years have seen a remarkable surge in the research into numerous aspects of human performance into the rapidly-unfolding, complex and high-consequence events that law enforcement officers often confront. This program, created and instructed exclusively by the Force Science Institute, is designed to present in practical and easy to understand terms, the results of the most cutting-edge research into the dynamics of human behavior during
life-threatening encounters, and how the findings relate to individual officers and agencies.

The goal of this program is to teach law enforcement professionals to apply critical concepts revealed in the research when responding, investigating, reconstructing, recalling, or otherwise analyzing the use of force. Additionally, the incorporation of the concepts into police officer training paradigms and frontline policing is crucial to enhance officer performance and safety. The application and integration of knowledge gleaned through this class has been proven to improve the accuracy and thoroughness of decisions made relative to behavior and performance during the incident.

Our curriculum uses sophisticated time-and-motion measurements to document critical hidden truths about the physical and mental dynamics of life-threatening events. This information applies to individual officers to understand and counteract the effects of fear and stress and is necessary to investigate not only officer-involved shootings but all force encounters appropriately. The lnstitute’s research findings have been directly credited with saving officer lives on the streets in addition to preventing some officers from going to prison after being wrongly accused of the criminal use of deadly force.
In this class, you’ll discover the science-backed facts about some of the most controversial force issues, including, but not limited to:

• How threatening suspects may be shot in the back by a well-trained officer who made a valid, lawful shooting decision.
• Why officers, in high-adrenalin confrontations, will continue to fire what some commentators will judge as
• unnecessary• rounds.
• How to analyze video footage of force encounters and what you need to know about the limitations of cameras.
• What popular tactics used by some officers trying to reduce lag time actually put the officers at greater risk
• How perceptual alterations and stress-induced memory gaps impact an officers’ ability to accurately recall incident details
• How quickly suspects can launch an attack and why officers and trainers must take Force Science speed studies into account when preparing for a confrontation.
• How investigators can “mine” officers’ memories and avoid interviewing mistakes that can put the officer, the investigator, and the entire department in jeopardy.
• What the most recent Force Science studies have to say about traffic stop assault response and officer movement, threats posed by prone subjects, the impact of exhaustion on officer memory and performance, and more.

Hosted by Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, Kalispell, MT

To register email [email protected] or call 406-885-3510