SUPA Magazine 2012-Q1V1

IN THIS ISSUE

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Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

INFORMATION & CREDITS C

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STATE UNIVERSITY POLICE ASSOCIATION M A G A Z I N E WINTER 2012

The State University Police Association (SUPA) is published four times a year for members and friends by members and friends.

The views and opinions expressed in the articles of this magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SUPA. While each author is encouraged to fact-check their work, SUPA cannot guarantee complete accuracy or completeness of information presented by a contributing author.

There is no fee for this magazine, and no fees are paid to members or friends for their contributions. While paid advertisements may appear in this magazine, neither the union nor the publishers specifically endorse any advertised products or services. (Of course, some of them are great!)

Contributing authors and photographers retain individual copyrights for their work. As a collection of contributions in a tangible medium of expression, SUPA assumes copyright for the contents of this magazine.

The magazine may be printed or distributed electronically without exclusions, additions, or modifications. No fees may be collected for this magazine (or any portion thereof ) without the express permission of SUPA. The contents of (or any portion thereof ) this magazine may be used and cited in accordance with MLA or other similar standard, where the author/photographer and publication are provided proper credit for their work.

Comments and letters to the editor may be sent to: niteswine+supmagcomments@gmail.com This magazine is published using Adobe software products, including InDesign CS4, Photoshop CS4, Illustrator CS4 and Acrobat 9 Professional.

More information about SUPA, including: news, blog, photographs, contact information, and electronic copies of past issues may be accessed at: www.supacsu.org Editor, Art Director, & Designer: John Edds of San Luis Obispo When printing, SUPA recommends paper certified in accordance to standards set forth by the Forest Stewardship Council™, which is committed to managing the world’s forests responsibly and promoting well-managed forestry world-wide. When printed and FSC requirements are met, the printer is authorized by SUPA to add the associated logo in the area at left. © All rights reserved Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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FROM THE EDITOR

First Issue, Volume Numero Uno ... It Begins.

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elcome to the first published issue of SUPA Magazine. If you are a member of the Statewide University Police Association of California, then this magazine is for you. As might be expected, this is a new endeavor for us (for me, too!); and, as is common when beginning something anew, there are countless opportunities for improvement. So, please do expect to identify many ways to improve this publication in the future – and, let me know about it! Better yet, consider rolling up your sleeves and doing something about it.

If you are not a member of SUPA, this magazine may also be of some benefit to you as well. May it be informative or entertaining; I do hope this publication has value much beyond our target audience. Like our members, I invite you also to share with me your ideas for improvement in future issues. You may also find an opportunity to contribute, as well.

There are many ways in which one might measure the success of this venture in publication. In proposing this magazine, I outlined to our president, Jeff Solomon, several considerations as well as a number of goals. In turn, Jeff suggested others I had not even considered. Others since have done the same. I have found it interesting to realize this magazine has already become a multi-functional device well before its publication -- in so many ways this magazine may improve the function of our respective roles within the union, provide benefits to members, educate and learn from those who are not, provide assistance and attention to our group leaders, and even potentially provide all of us something tangible that unites us in many ways.

I do wish to express the principle aim for my involvement in this publication. Throughout the state there are 22 campuses (and soon, I’m told, a 23rd) with functioning police service departments where there are employed members of SUPA. Having worked for several years at three different university police service departments within the California State University system, I have had more than a taste for some of the differences between campuses and the police service agencies at each. We are all very different, and we all operate in very inconsistent environments and conditions.

Furthermore, we are largely separated from one another; and, for the most part, operate independently with few opportunities for collaboration at our respective levels. As a result, some of us really have no sense of being a member of a statewide police agency, but rather feel as if we simply belong to a small campus department. Where those departments are seemingly undervalued and hidden from public view, it can be a very isolated experience.

By way of my involvement in this magazine, I do seek opportunities to establish a greater sense of community among all of our members throughout the state. It is my hope this magazine might be a vehicle to establish a greater awareness of being a member of a significant statewide agency of law enforcement professionals. Perhaps, in time, many of us will come to identify more of what we have in common and recognize, in time, we have been able to influence change that erases some of our present disparities. If not quite esprit de corps, I do very much wish to foster something akin to it amongst our members, statewide.

In the meantime, enjoy. Do let me know your ideas on how we may improve this publication, and do understand that you are invited to contribute to its success, however we may each perceive it.

Oh, nearly forgot! We’re kicking around some name options for the magazine and, honestly, none of them are any good. So, if you have some ideas, please send me an email.

John Edds, Editor in Chief Look, ma! I made chief! Actually, Edds is just a patrol officer at San Luis Obispo. Twenty-three years in the CSUPD system, the last 13 as an officer. Edds may be reached at niteswine+supamag@gmail.com.

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Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Past, Present & Future

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wish to thank each of you for allowing me to serve as your union president these past two years. It has been an incredible journey, certainly one with both ups and (sometimes, scary) downs. Overall, my first term has been one of the best, most fulfilling experiences of my life. Thank you.

On January 27th, the Board of Directors elected me for a second term as president of our union. In addition, our Executive Board members were also re-elected. I wish to extend my appreciation to the board for their support and display of confidence in our representation of you, the Statewide University Police Association.

Aside from myself, the Executive Board includes Vice-President Mike Johnson of San Diego, Treasurer Yolanda Abundiz of Northridge, and Secretary Yolanda Harris of East Bay. On behalf of SUPA (and, also most personally), I wish to extend my appreciation to each of you for your tireless efforts and the work you have done on behalf of SUPA. We have several new members to the board. I am pleased with the new enthusiasm, the fresh perspectives and ideas they have already begun to offer. However, in welcoming new members, I do find myself missing some good friends and familiar faces. I do wish to thank our former board members for their service and dedication.

It is no secret our members have received no beneficial movement in salary since 2008. No raises. No cost of living adjustments. No in-range step progression, as do and as have all other law enforcement agencies in the state during this period of economic distress. Your Board of Directors and your Executive Board have been and are striving to resolve these issues. We are presently in open contract negotiations with the CSU system, and making in-range progression is the priority. I am looking forward to securing a favorable contract in the near future.

We have come a long way in the past two years. Our foundation has strengthened, communication has improved, our web site has been upgraded, and with this first issue, we have established a magazine that is for us, by us, and all about the things we value and appreciate. We have changed law firms to Lackie, Dammeier & McGill, which has improved our legal representation and services to our members. We have been successful in dealing with problematic management, and increased the quality of employment life for many of our members. We have formed tighter bonds with many members of management, and have learned a good deal from one another. We have identified several departments and managers to serve as models of excellent leadership and good business practices. In contrast, we have also recognized others in need of improvement, encouragement, and sometimes intervention.

No doubt, the next two years will be trying, economically. It will be an uphill battle. However, I am cautiously optimistic, and I do truly believe we will be in a better place two years hence.

Every one of you provides an invaluable service to your campuses and communities. As professional law enforcement officers, corporals, and sergeants, you maintain order and provide for the safety of hundreds of thousands of students, staff, faculty, administrators, and visitors each day. I am very proud to be a member of our community; and, I want you to be certain there are others who recognize we continue to step up to the line despite being understaffed, underpaid, and oftentimes with limited or absent resources.

Our system has a history of being fragmented, where we have become weakened and subject to manipulation. This has resulted in a statewide loss of identity and an individual struggle to reestablish ourselves. Look forward to a hopeful future where the fragments are reunited, where we have established a statewide identity that is well-recognized and well-respected far beyond the proverbial one mile radius.

Thank you, again, for allowing me this opportunity to represent and serve each of you. As always, please feel free to contact me at any time. Be safe out there!

Jeffrey H. Solomon, President of the Statewide University Police Association (SUPA) Solomon is a corporal at Sacramento with 16 years of law enforcement experience.

Solomon may be reached at jsolomon@csus.edu.

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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UPCOMING

Leadership Surveys & You

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ast year the State University Police Association conducted leadership surveys at each of the 22 campuses where members are employed.

While not without some complications, the surveys have proven to be recognized by both insiders as well as those outside of our membership, our individual agencies, and even our system as one of the most effective tools our union has employed on both the statewide and local levels.

The mission of the survey process is as follows: To provide all SUPA members the forum by which to anonymously express genuine sentiment regarding the current state of their respective department’s administration, provide individual chiefs the opportunity to make adjustments, and ultimately make effective change, locally and system-wide.

SUPA has used the model set-forth by Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to serve as its benchmark to judge individual agencies. PERF is widely considered the nation’s authoritative think-tank on law enforcement issues. In a publication titled “How to Rate Your Local Police”, PERF determined an effective means to rate the quality of service provided by a local law enforcement agency. The conclusion, written by Chief David C. Couper of the Madison Police Department drew the following determinations: In lieu of using myths to evaluate the quality of police service, PERF has identified three factors which must be considered in any evaluation of quality police service. These factors are: 1. Leadership 2. Organization and 3. Policy Characteristics

to provide quality police service. The chief must lead by example and display a level of personal integrity which inspires respect from the employees of the agency, the members of the community and the elected officials. The chief must set the tone for the police department. He or she must be sensitive to the needs of the community and ensure that all citizens, regardless of sex, race, religion or national origin, receive equal protection under the law.

If the chief does not display these qualities, it is a clear signal to the men and women of the police agency that they can act in a similar fashion. The chief of police must also be able to clearly articulate the mission and policies of the police agency.

Organization The organizational characteristics of an agency also serve as an indicator of the quality of police service.

Police officers must uphold our civil rights as guaranteed by the United States Constitution. In all dealings with the public, law enforcement officers must follow the legal requirements for use of force, arrest and search and seizure.

PERF indicates this “is the hallmark of professional and competent officers.”

A police agency, if it is to provide quality service, must also ensure it has well-trained personnel with access to the most advanced equipment and technology to assist in the effort to combat crime. Not all agencies, because of their small size or limited financial resources, have the ability to possess the most advanced technology. In these cases, it is necessary that cooperative agreements are coordinated with other agencies to provide these services.

Policy

Only by closely evaluating these issues can we get an idea of the true quality of the police service we receive.

Leadership In order to evaluate the leadership characteristics of a police agency, you must ask, “What kind of person is the chief?” The chief ’s leadership ability is the single most important factor in an agency’s ability

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Policy characteristics are the third measure PERF recommends be considered when evaluating the quality of police service. Policy characteristics include the agency’s ability to: provide written policies for operational practices; recruit and employ the most qualified individuals; provide the highest quality training for its Continues on Page 42

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

APPEAL & INVITATION

Be a Part & Share in the Success

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magine, if you would, just one member from each of the police service departments throughout the California State University system were to write an article that would appear in this magazine. It would quickly grow into a lengthy publication. That’s more than agreeable with me.

Picture, if you will, a listing where each campus has a heading and there are entries underneath each that provide updates on recent notable incidents and events, promotions, new assignments, new hires, retirements, employment opportunities, and other news. Seems to me a good way to be informed about the goings on throughout our system.

Consider for each new member of our department throughout the state, for each promotion or award received, a profile article is written and included in this magazine for us all to share.

When a new chief comes on board at a particular campus, a profile of their professional history and their visions for that particular campus might be published herein, as well. These are good ways, I believe, for us to build a better relationship within our group and understand our leaders better and their ambitions within their department.

another much involved in the (sadly, former) regional NTF team, badge collectors, patch collectors, bookworms, home DIY project-builders, expert firearms instructors, … and, on and on and on …. The point being each campus is filled with members who have interests, experiences, personal accomplishments and other things to share with others throughout our system. It stands to reason there are also members at other campuses who share similar experiences and interests. This magazine just might bring together members in to groups that might otherwise never know one another. I simply cannot see anything but win in that. I hope you agree.

Maybe your campus has a focus-issue, which might serve as a feature story. I am hopeful to establish a team of persons who wish to engage their inner-writer, to release in themselves the investigative reporter that’s never had a good opportunity to step-in from the outside, ask questions, and seek the root of an issue that needs to be brought to light. You might just find this magazine can provide that opportunity.

Perhaps, a big event or incident has occurred at your campus, and an after-action report might provide huge benefits to all of us throughout the state. After all, if it can happen at one campus, it stands to reason a similar Taking just one department event will likely occur at (my own) into consideration, I see members with all some other campus, too. This magazine can be an effective sorts of personal interests or who engage in activities that vehicle for us to learn from one another in order to provide might be shared and enjoyed with others throughout the even more exceptional service to our respective communisystem. At San Luis Obispo, for example, we have ofties. ficers interested in beekeeping, another is restoring a few Within your department, you probably have several retired police cruisers into show condition, there is one much involved in martial arts, another has been a sports members who are certified instructors on any one or more referee for both youth and high school sports for years, topics. Consider this magazine as your opportunity to seize a particular training topic (or share the topic with others one made a run for sheriff, another serves on a regional bomb squad, while another is on the regional SWAT throughout the state) by providing a regular article on your team, there are some that play World of Warcraft, others area of expertise. hunt and fish, among the group there are some fantastic cooks, a few are real computer nerds, one is a gadget-guy, Got an opinion? Write about it. I’m sure you’ll have those who will seek to defend an alternative view. Wish to editoanother used to compete in tractor pull competitions, a rialize on a particular contemporary topic? Go for it. This guy that reaches for duct tape as a first-solution to just about every problem, one has been a K9 officer, we’ve Continues on Page 37 got gun enthusiasts too and an budding gunsmith, Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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LEGAL

After a Shooting, Should Your Statement be Voluntary or Compelled?

Most often, one of the more debated issues in the aftermath of an officer-involved shooting is whether the officer will provide a “voluntary” statement or demand that he be ordered to provide a statement, making it “compelled.” Over the years there have been several reasons given to support or oppose making a voluntary statement after an OIS. Before getting into these various reasons, it is important to understand what is a “voluntary” statement and what is legally deemed to be “compelled.”

A statement will be deemed compelled if it is “obtained by threats or promises of leniency, whether express or implied, however slight, or by the exertion of any improper influence.” People v. Ramos, (2004) 190 Cal.App.4th 1194. It is well settled that a threat of insubordination for failing to make a statement (or write a report) will make the statement compelled. Alameida v. State Personnel Bd., (2004) 120 Cal.App.4th 46.

Why would an officer or his attorney insist on the statement being compelled? The most important

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reason is that a “compelled” statement may not be used against the officer in any criminal proceeding. Lybarger v. City of Los Angeles, (1985) 40 Cal.3d 822. A “compelled” statement may also not be used in any State Court civil proceeding (Ca. Govt. Code 3303-f ). It is clear with these legal protections, why many officers and their representatives stand firm on not making a voluntary statement and getting the agency to order a compelled statement.

Some of the reasons offered over the years for making or not making a voluntary statement are discussed below.

The District Attorney’s Office requires a “voluntary” statement.

Most officer involved shootings are investigated by an outside agency, such as the Sheriff’s Department or District Attorney’s Office who always raise this issue. While the District Attorney’s Office may inform investigators that they would like “voluntary” statements, they nevertheless are entitled to review your compelled statement ordered by your Department. A myth in this area often utilized by investigators to obtain voluntary statements is that the District Attorney’s Office cannot look at a “compelled” state-

ment. That is simply inaccurate.

Penal Code §832.7 (a) specifically allows “a grand jury, a district attorney’s office, or the attorney general’s office” to review “investigations or proceedings concerning the conduct of peace officers,” which would include of course the officer’s compelled statement following an OIS. The district attorneys in just about every county have utilized this provision to review “compelled” statements after officer involved shootings where no voluntary statement was provided.

The only reason the District Attorney’s Office presses its investigators to obtain voluntary statements is because on the rare occasion it has to prosecute the officer, “the prosecution has the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the statement was voluntary” in order to offer it as evidence. People v. Sapp (2003) 31 Cal.4th 240, 267.

The District Attorney’s Office needs a “voluntary” statement to prosecute the bad guy.

This, of course, is not an issue where the bad guy is dead. Where that is not the case, prosecution will be sought against the suspect for whatever led up to the shooting.

This too, is another myth created by OIS investigators to persuade officers to make a voluntary statement. Of course, an officer just involved in a shooting wants to make sure the suspect is prosecuted fully. However, the nature of the officer’s statement has no impact on the criminal case against the suspect. Any deputy district attorney will tell you that a criminal defendant may not assert the constitutional rights of another.

People v. Clays (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 55. In other words, a criminal defendant has no standing to challenge the admissibility of an officer’s statement based on it being compelled. It is the officer’s constitutional

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

LEGAL right, not the criminal defendant’s to not make a voluntary statement.

It would “look better” if the statement was voluntary.

Another issue raised is the proposition that it would “look bad” to the public or to a jury if the officer only made a statement because he was ordered to do so. This reason also lacks merit. The public is never told if the statement was voluntary or not.

I have never seen a news article describing an OIS, indicate the character of the officer’s statement. As for a jury, this fact should never be in front of a jury since evidentiary rules prohibit introduction of evidence which shows the exercise of a constitutional right. Evidence Code §913 (a). See People v. Holloway (2004) 14 Cal. Rptr.3d 212, 240. Since the officer has a constitutional right not to make a voluntary statement, that fact should be precluded from evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding.

Even without this provision, there are other ways to keep the fact that the officer was ordered to provide a statement out of the case. One way is to simply have the officer’s representative get the order on a audio recording or in a separate memorandum or even witnessed by another officer.

This way it is clear the statement was compelled, however, the criminal defense or civil rights attorney will be unaware of that aspect, thereby avoiding the appearance that the officer only made the statement because he had no choice.

From a civil liability view, I have yet to see a circumstance where the fact that an officer’s statement was compelled incur additional liability on the officer or employing agency. On the other hand, I have seen examples where making an immediate voluntary statement after a shooting has incurred significant liability. This, of course, makes sense. When making a voluntary statement, there are numerous agencies where you would be providing two separate statements, a voluntary statement to the criminal investigators and a compelled state-

ment to the administrative investigators. When these statements differ, even slightly, civil rights attorneys suing the department, who will ultimately have access to both statements, accuse the officer of lying to conceal a bad shooting. As any civil attorney will confirm, from a liability stand point, providing one statement is almost always the better way to go.

Some agencies have recognized this and have implemented policies that require officers to provide statements to criminal investigators after a critical incident, thus making the statement “compelled.”

needs to know as to what happened, providing the District Attorney’s Office with information it needs to know as to what happened (P.C. 832.7) and utilization to prosecute any criminal suspects in the matter. The only aspect not satisfied by a compelled statement is the lack of the ability for the District Attorney’s Office or federal prosecutors to utilize such a statement to prosecute the officer, should that need arise. While it is rare that officers are prosecuted in such cases, there are peace officers presently in prison as a result of on duty shootings.

The Department’s administration wants a voluntary statement.

Ultimately, it is the officer’s choice on whether to make a voluntary or compelled statement after he or she is advised of the legal ramifications.

No matter what the choice, we will be there to assist the officer through the process.

As a former police officer, I can certainly appreciate the reality of being under the pressure of administration to provide a voluntary statement.

After all, police officers have a strong desire to cooperate in investigations.

Unfortunately, the administration’s compulsion to prefer a voluntary statement is not rooted in logic, but in the belief that they should have unfettered control of the investigation. Most administrations do not like officers to have representatives in any setting, including negotiations, internal affairs investigations and particularly after a critical incident.

This is not because it is in the officer’s best interest, but because it interferes with the administration’s perceived absolute authority. More sophisticated police administrators now realize that after an officer involved shooting, especially ones where there are concerns, the officer is best advised to seek legal counsel and follow their attorney’s advice. This usually not only protects the officer but in the long run also the public entity’s liability.

From a strictly legal standpoint, making a voluntary statement only exposes the officer to greater liability, both criminally and civilly.

Upon a close review of the legal issues involved, an officer providing a compelled statement achieves all necessary purposes, providing the Department with the information it

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

by Dieter C. Dammeier Dieter Dammeier is a former police officer and founding partner of Lackie, Dammeier & McGill. As an attorney, he has represented police officers in every aspect of employment representation, from discipline appeal hearings to litigation argued before the California and United States Supreme Courts. He is now Managing Partner of Lackie, Dammeier & McGill, overseeing the work of 17 attorneys who specialize in police officer representation. Today, this law firm represents more police associations than any other firm in the Western U.S. and is the largest provider of PORAC/LDF representation in California. The firm aptly chose this motto: “Former Cops Defending Current Ones,” and all of us are among those this firm well represents.

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PERSPECTIVE

Officer Safety & Combat Mindset: “Switched On”

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aywatch. Tuesday. 14:30 hours. “Routine” campus shift. Thus far you have responded to the usual unlock calls, the myriad of accidental (and probably avoidable) alarm activations and at least 60 questions regarding parking, been called or mistaken for a security guard at least twice by professors and asked several times, “So, are you a real cop?”

Anyone who has worked as a campus police officer for longer than one day will admit this is reality in our profession. What we sometimes fail to realize is in addition to the day-to-day “feel good” routine work we accomplish, in my opinion, we work in one of the most dangerous environments in the world. An environment that breeds civility. An environment that 99.9% of the time puts you in direct contact with educated and fairly non-violent individuals. This is quite the contrary to working in, for example, South Central Los Angeles or Oakland. Officers from agencies in these areas go to work each day, knowing their day will bring countless high priority, possibly life threatening calls for service.

These officers are forced to be “switched on.” There is no question weapons fashioned against us in the hands of a committed criminal pose great risk to our survival.

However, I contend there is a battle that occurs well before this encounter that p poses the ggreatest risk to ourselves. It is a battle of the mind. d Because we are assigned to campuses of higher education, we must carry ourselves in a manner that is very different than that of an officer working for a municipal agency. I have been an a officer in the CSU system for five years.

My prior law la aw enforcement experience was as a deputy sheriff s eriff in the same sh area. When I ggraduated gr aduated from the police academy in 1998, never did I think my mission would

Borstrom, Hero and unidentified training assistant courtesy of Photographer Robert Inglis.

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be anything other than “taking bad guys to jail.” It’s not.

It’s a lot less of that and a whole lot more being outwardly “Officer Friendly.” Yet, bad guys (sometimes, really bad guys) do stray onto or intentionally arrive on campus.

And, some of them are hell-bent on doing bad stuff, even when we identify and focus our attention on them.

Thus, our mindset in regards to survival must never change. We must make a decision each day to “switch on” and be prepared to defend ourselves as well as the students, faculty and staff entrusted to our care. Are you still struggling with this concept? If so, do this: Close your eyes and picture your wife, your husband, significant other, your son, your daughter, – whomever or whatever brings true joy to your life. Perhaps, the first time you held your newborn in your arms, or the feeling you get when you are greeted by your toddler at the end of a long day. Now, imagine all of your training, all of your efforts, all of your decisions (both good and bad) will collectively decide the outcome of an adversarial encounter you won’t know is coming until it’s already happening. You will either be ready, or you will not. You will either return home again, or you will not – there is no middle ground.

There will be a winner and a loser. Now, open your eyes.

You’ve just “switched on.” moments you least These encounters will occur in the momen expect. You will not get to choose the day and time life of someone you will be fighting for your life or the lif As Colonel you have sworn t protect. A to (U.S. Army/Warrior Science Grossman Army/W more you are Group) states, “The mo justifiable lethal mentally prepared to deliver jus force, and the more you are trained to de defend yourself quickly and effectively, the less likely yo you are to ever nneed another human eed to press the trigger against an being.”

Why Because criminals W Wh y is this? Becau can see when they sense, feel and se are dealing w with someone who w o has the wh th combat mindset. m ndset. Most will mi chose tto leave you alone. Only the most dedicated dedica criminal fanatic will or fanat knowingly put his knowin life on tthe line when he ssuspects his oopponent has th the awareness, the ability and th Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

PERSPECTIVE the mindset to subdue, arrest and potentially kill him in a flash. Should you ever face such an opponent, act immediately, ferociously, and completely.

A badge, a vest, and a gun mean nothing without awareness, ability, and mindset. I recently had the pleasure of assisting with range qualifications at our recent CRU training. We spoke about this combat mindset and referenced Scott Reitz’s (of ITTS) new book The Art of Modern Gun-Fighting. In the book, Reitz reminds us: There is a brutal honesty in gun-fighting. Either you struck your opponent or you did not. Either he struck you, or he did not. Either you made and acted upon correct decisions or you did not. There is no false deception in such affairs.

It is both brutal and honest in the same moment. The only universal truths about gun-fighting, is that there are no universal truths. There is however a consistent theme.

Individuals who have good clean mechanical shooting and tactical skill sets, and who additionally maintain their composure under fire, seem to prevail more than those who do not. We must at all cost, keep our head about us

and focus on our fundamentals. Align the pistol, press the trigger, incorporate follow-through and let the pistol shoot itself. Stressful situations involving threat to life and limb tend to pull your focus towards the threat. This is a natural tendency and condition. While you have to identify the threat, there must be an emotional disconnect, which allows for clinical problem-solving, once you have decided to act towards that threat. Fear is natural, panic is not. Your aggression should be directed as a forceful and mechanically sound process, as opposed to an out of control and emotionally infused process. If you are not in the military, and not in a terrorist rich environment, your most likely gun-fighting opponent will be that of the criminal persuasion. Such individuals have matriculated to this level of force and criminal activity, through the commission of lesser crimes for a number of years – not always, but usually. Hard core criminal types do not see the world as you do. If you understand nothing else, then you should at least grasp this concept. Where we see compassion, criminals see weakness and the opportunity to exploit it.

However, despite them displaying bravado and boasting how they’ll never be taken alive, very few will hold onto this notion, when someone of ability opposes them. Honed skills and a firm understanding of the law will always be your best weapon against hardened criminals. Your mindset will drive the fight, while your mechanics will carry it out. Once again, the basics will always carry the day.

In closing, I hope you will find this article helpful, as you continue to do great work. As with anything, there are many different perspectives and equally as many opinions.

These are mine: Fight complacency, stay current on policy and law, and ensure you are physically prepared to save your life or that of your partner’s. Each time you train, train as if your life depends on it. When the time comes, you will not arise to the occasion and be a hero, you will instead fall to the level of your training effort and perform at that level … Stay Frosty ... and, always stay “switched on!”

by Dan Borgstrom

w w m .co al tic ac ut eT rc so Fo k u he w. ec n t !

Ch o Web

Monday - Friday 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday 10:00 am - 3:00 pm 771 Chambers Lane, Unit 300 Simi Valley, CA 93065 Phone: (805) 584-2000 Website: www.forcetactical.com

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

Borgstrom is a patrol officer at Channel Islands with 13 years of law enforcement experience. Borgstrom is a K-9 officer, field training officer, DRE, firearms/tactics instructor, CRU member, EMT, and SUPA Director. Hero is Borgstrom’s K-9 partner.

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HEADING HE H EAD ADIIN NG

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magine you are running along the side of the road just north of Baker, California. You know, “the gateway to Death Valley.” The hottest place in the western hemisphere. The lowest place in North America. The driest environment anywhere within some four thousand miles or more. And, it’s already getting hot.

At least it’s a dry heat, right? And, sure, it’s only April. So, it’s not like July-heat, when the temperature reaches toward a freaking 134° Fahrenheit!

No, wait!

This is Death Valley, and this place doesn’t play by any rules. It’s not hot anymore.

In fact, it’s snowing. Blizzard conditions.

Freezing. And, you’re running still. In fact, you’re not just running: You are racing!

Against other people. Like five thousand of them! Over a distance of 120 miles! What the heck are all of you thinking!? And, how did this come about?

Many of you already know there exists a

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law enforcement race commonly called “Baker to Vegas.”

Originally, called the “Death Valley Relay,” this race was developed by the Los Angeles Police Department, who naturally chose to run the participants through a cheerful area known as the “Devil’s Graveyard.” For unknown reasons (possibly recorded in an internal affairs folder marked “Confidential: Forever”), the Death Valley Relay came to an abrupt and inexplicable end.

In 1985, LAPD Officers Chuck Foote and Larry Moore re-established the race, using the original format but a different route (again, possibly to avoid any evidence remaining in the “Devil’s Graveyard” area). With a starting point in Baker, California and a finish line nearby Las Vegas, Nevada, the race quickly became known as the “Baker to Vegas Relay.” However, the official name of the 120-mile competition is the “Challenge Cup Relay.”

Both names seem to be well-used, both independently and even strung together.

In the time since, the Challenge Cup Relay has grown from a competition among divisions within LAPD to something enormous. Recent years have included teams from all over the United States as well as from countries throughout the world, including: law enforcement teams from Queensland, Australia; South Wales, England; Calgary, Canada; Berlin, Germany; and many others.

Today, 270 teams compete in numerous law enforcement categories, including: judges, probation officers, district attorneys, U.S. attorneys, and even full-time civilian police personnel. And, one of these teams includes members from the California State University Police Running Team.

The CSU Running Team was founded in 1998 by SerStatewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

HEADING HE H EAD ADIIN NG

In

geant Jess Lopez (retired) of Fullerton. Recruiting from the Critical Response Unit, Lopez assembled a group of members to represent our statewide agency in the Challenge Cup Relay. The team completed the race that year in 19 hours, 27 minutes and placed 20th in the 300 Division.

In 1999, the CSU Running Team returned to the punishing, desert gauntlet and improved their time (19 hours, even), placing 19th in the same division. The team would not compete again until 2003, where the team earned a 26th place finish in the Invitational Division with a finish time of 19 hours, 35 minutes. Thereafter, the team turned dormant with no signs of reemerging.

SStatewide id U Union i P Police li Association A i i -V Vol.l 11, Q1 Q1, 2012

2006, Corporal Frank Gudani of Northridge decided to rebuild the CSU Police Running Team. It was the result of Gudani’s recruitment efforts, which influenced me to join the team and participate for the first time in the “Baker to Vegas” relay. Our team of runners included Northridge, Dominguez Hills, Long Beach, Los Angeles, and Fullerton. Our goal was simply this: Successfully finish the race.

Leg 19 is six miles. It was assigned to me. While I’ve done my share of running, I had never run more than three miles on any given outing. In preparation for the relay, I admittedly did absolutely, positively no training, whatsoever. And, it showed. I did complete my leg of the race. At a crawling eleven-minute-mile pace. Oh, and, man, did I pay! The next 48-hours were nagged by razorsore muscles and punctuated by a few leg cramps of epic

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CSU RUNNING TEAM proportions. Yet, I would return to the relay, again and again each year since.

I was joined in 2006 by both Lieutenant Chris Schivley of Long Beach and Sergeant Valerie Caldera of Los Angeles. Together, the three of us remain the only members of the CSU Running Team to have continued competingg each year since in the Challenge Cup Relay.

Not only did we complete the race that year, but we earned a 40th place finish in the Invitational Mixed Division with a time of 21 hours, 47 minutes.

Members from Northridge would lead the CSU Police Running Team in the years since:

ners, who were expected to run well, ended up performing poorly. Our team truly learned last year that it is very, very difficult to earn a mug: in addition to the extreme conditions of the harsh desert that is Death Valley, the other teams are also hell-bent on earning mugs, too. It is raw competition at its finest.

On a

The 2007 team plowed through the desert race under thee encouragement of Corporal Leon Ortiz-Gil of Northridge. The team would improve its time to just 21 hours,, 11 minutes and place 41st in the Invitational Mixed Division.

personal note, my performance as an individual runner last year marked my personal best in the Challenge Cup Relay. Unlike my first run in 2006, I did train extremely hard for 2011. Leg 17 is 7.3 miles in length, and my per-mile pace was just 7 minutes, 20 seconds. That’s a 3 minute, 40 second per mile improvement over my first Baker to

In the next year’s Challenge Cup Relay, Sergeant Yolandaa d Abundiz of Northridge would serve as team captain, and the team would again improve its time: 20 hours, 38 minutes.

In 2009, I would step up to assume the team captaincy, and I remain the leader of the CSU Running Team today. Our team included members from Channel Islands, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Monterey Bay, Northridge, Pomona, San Diego, and San Marcos, and that year we accomplished two significant achievements: First, we 8 broke our team’s best record time with a finish time of 18 hours, 51 minutes. Second, we placed in the top of our Y category, which earned us a trophy mug – this is a VERY BIG DEAL in the “Baker to Vegas” community. Only the fastest, elite teams in each category earn the giant, 1-liter glass mugs that are etched with not only “Baker too Vegas Challenge Cup Relay” but also includes the namess of the teams who have placed 1st, overall.

I’m still incredibly proud of our team’s accomplishments that year. It was an amazing success, and we were simply on top of the world when we received our mugs at the awards ceremony. We carried those mugs everywhere that night and drank from them in celebration of a truly remarkable victory.

Vegas run, which was a mile and

The 2010 relay was a rough-go for us. One of our own suffered a sprained knee and a replacement runner was required to complete that leg of the race. We simply did not have enough strong runners to recover from the time-penalty we incurred for having to replace our injured teammate.

Despite that year’s injury, the resulting penalty, and heat exhaustion, our team did break its finish-time record with an actual time of 18 hours, 32 minutes to which a ten-minute penalty for runner substitution was added.

Our team in 2011 was looking strong, and we aimed to earn our second mug. However, the extreme heat, along with an early injury got the best of us. Many of our run-

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a third shorter!

This year we look to have a very strong team. The race is in April – it’s Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

CSU RUNNING TEAM willing and able to run each of these segments, really coming fast! We are excited to report that represenlife happens. Understandably, things sometimes tation among CSU campuses come up (or we happen to fall down), preventis at an all-time high ing a designated runner from attending or even with nearly half of completing their leg of the race. So, we have our campuses being four alternate runners available throughout the represented, includrelay to step-in should they be needed. ing: Dominguez Hills, Channel Is Non-Runner Support – simply put, this race lands, Fullerton, Los cannot happen unless each team has a dedicated Angeles, Monterey group of members, who do not have to run at Bay, Northridge, Poall. These members work both in our command mona, Sacramento, post prior to and San Berthroughout the Th e 2009 Mug-Winning Team nardino, competition, San DiLeg #1: Mark Benavidez, Northridge where they colego, San lect and commuFrancisco, Leg #2: Lamine Secka, San Diego nicate important and San Leg #3: Yosarin Panza, San Marcos information and Marcos.

Leg #4: Randy Abney, Northridge arrange for the needs of those ParticipaLeg #5: Noe Lemus, Northridge competing in the tion is not Leg #6: Mike Morris, Channel Islands field. limited Leg #7: Dave Ham, Monterey Bay to those  Follow-Van willing Leg #8: Leon Ortiz-Gil, Northridge Drivers – runner and able Leg #9: Doug Flores, Northridge safety is of utto beat most importance Leg #10: Anthony Vargas, Northridge feet upon throughout the the arid Leg #11: Cece Desoto-Teunis, Channel Islands community of shoulder Leg #12: Valerie Caldera, Los Angeles† participants. Each of the runner is shadhighways.

Leg #13: Raymond Gonzalez, Northridge owed throughout The team Leg #14: Alfonso Valadez, Pomona their leg of the operates a competition by a Leg #15: Carlos Quiroz, Northridge command driver and team post and Leg #16: Chris Schivley, Long Beach of supporters. numerLeg #17: Yolanda Abundiz, Northridge Each team needs ous other to provide a van Leg #18: Mike Reyes, Northridge members for this purpose. are out in Leg #19: Chief John Reid, Channel Islands the field  Race Support Leg #20: Rick Kennedy, Northridge throughVolunteers – are † Caldera was stopped during her leg of the race for a period out the members asof 20 minutes because our team was too far ahead – the event. remaining stages were not yet prepared to receive runners. signed to work The CSU the race at a desRunning ignated exchange Team is point and provide assistance to race officials. comprised of the following members for All of these positions are open to civilians and sworn the Challenge Cup members of the law enforcement community. For this Relay: year’s Challenge Cup Relay, our running team is set and our non-running support members have been designat Runners & ed. This does not preclude others from participating in Alternate Runvarious other ways, however; opportunities may become ners – there are 20 available. So, if you are interested in joining our team legs in the race, and and being a part while we do have people

Continues on Page 40

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

15

PERSPECTIVE

On Tools, Training & Tactics: Don’t Lose Your Skill to Fight!

M

an dies after being tazed by police.” I’ve read that headline in the paper or heard it on the nightly news more times than I care to remember. The Tazer has had its share of controversy, certainly. However, no one who knows the facts can argue it has not saved lives and reduced both officer and suspect injuries in the years it has been used by law enforcement. I once used the Tazer (at my prior department) in a situation where lethal force might have been otherwise used. Strike that for one life potentially saved.

My current agency, like many agencies, authorizes the Tazer X-26 manufactured

by Tazer International. It is a valuable tool, and I like knowing I have it nearby, just in case.

I personally am not a big proponent of pepper spray, and I know a lot of others are also hesitant to use the O.C., especially indoors. It always seems to have a greater effect on the good guys. If you and your partners have ever attempted to cuff an actively resisting suspect while coughing uncontrollably and gasping for air, you know what I’m talking about. At the end of the day, I have found pepper spray works much better with aggressive animals than with aggressive humans.

With that being said (or written in this case), I’m urging my fellow officers to not rely on the Tazer or O.C. to the point where your defensive tactics suffer.

Remember, these are devices and they can malfunction or potentially affect you at any time. At my department, even

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though the Tazer is authorized, only about a third of the sworn staff actually carry it. Furthermore, to the best of my knowledge, I am the only officer who carries the extra cartridge; so, if the first deployment of the darts does not hit, then the Tazer (at least from a distance) is useless to them.

Also, in this era of public safety budgets being slashed left and right, overtime hours for training are few and far between. Unfortunately, some of the training that usually suffers is the defensive tactics training. Some agencies may also refer to this as “arrest and control.” I prefer to differentiate between arrest and control and defensive tactics.

To me, arrest and control are the verbal and physical tools and techniques we use to take someone into custody. Defensive tactics, on the other hand, are techniques we use to defend ourselves from a violent attacker.

Imagine a scenario, where after a long foot pursuit of jumping over fences and running through dark alleyways, you’ve lost your baton and O.C. and your Tazer was damaged. Now, you’re alone with the suspect in the backyard of an unknown residence. You’re, perhaps, faced with a larger opponent, his fists up, moving toward you and ready to clean your clock.

This is where defensive tactics come in.

Like other perishable skills, arrest and control must be practiced on a regular basis in order for the officer to retain the knowledge. In my 11 year career between two departments, I have had four (each, just 4 hour blocks) of arrest and control.

As for defensive tactics, nothing. Zilch.

Nada. No training whatsoever has been provided to me in defensive tactics since my experience in the academy. Sadly, I imagine the situation is likely similar in many agencies nowadays, where arrest and control has been bundled into perishable skills training requirements and defensive tactics has been seemingly been forgotten.

Many of us (me included) seek training outside of work in the area of handto-hand combat. Whether it is boxing, wrestling, mixed or traditional martial arts, I highly recommend anyone in our business seek some sort of outside self-defense training. You may go your entire career and never need to defend yourself in an all out street fight, but if one should occur, you need to know you have the skills to handle yourself.

by Jason LeClair Officer Jason LeClair is a patrol officer at San Luis Obispo with 11 years of police experience. He is also assigned as a Resident Hall Officer.

LeClair has been training in Shorin Ryu Shorinkan Karate. He is a student instructor (called a Sempai) and currently holds the rank of nikyu (or intermediate brown belt).

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol.l 1, Q1, 2012

TRAINING

The Vertical Approach to Emergency Planning and Management for Colleges and Universities

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he lack of Emergency Management Planning and Training on a college or university campus is not a budget problem, it’s a priority problem.

Most college and university campuses have a set of emergency plans and have trained some of their staff how to manage emergencies. Unfortunately, from our perspective, nobody is reading and really memorizing these plans, and what’s worse, there is no continuing comprehensive emergency management training program in place on the campus that reaches all the critical groups affected by an emergency.

Then, when a real emergency occurs, nobody feels competent to put the plans into effect, so no one runs and gets the Emergency Plans Book as the first order of business. The next problem when a real emergency occurs is that only the small group of people who have had some training (usually campus security bosses and a few other key people) have a concept of knowing what to do. This leads all the rest of the people on the campus to feel abandoned, scared and not knowing what to do in the crisis.

The good news is that by instituting what we call a “vertical” approach, reaching out with tailored training package to each of the major groups on your college or university, you can very quickly have a vast improvement in your emergency planning and response efforts.

The five key vertical groups are: 1. The Students 2. The Certificated Staff and Faculty 3. The Building Managers 4. The Campus Emergency Management Team 5. The Campus Executives In order to put this program into effect you need to have a designated

Emergency Management person, someone who will be solely responsible for the administration of this program and who you can hold accountable for its successes and failures.

One of the first things I look for on any campus is the specific person whose job it is to coordinate Emergency Management, Planning and Training. Usually the inability to find such a person, or the fact that the person assigned has several other jobs besides Emergency Management, Planning and Training, is a tipoff as to the level of priority and worth of the endeavor given to it by the campus leadership.

“Each college and university needs an “Expert” in the field of Emergency Management ... Committees do not work in this critical functional area.”

My basic guideline is: if your campus has a population of over 5,000 people, with students, faculty and staff or more than 10-15 buildings, you need a full time person (Full Time Equivalent-FTE) assigned to this task. The most common situation seems to be to assign this job as an “extra duty” to the Police Chief or Director of Public Safety, without giving their department a full-time person to do the job. This is a serious mistake on any college or university campus.

The current issues that a Police Chief or Director of Public Safety have to deal with on a campus today require their full-time attention to supervision and management in the handling of their service area. To distract them with another full time job is a formula that can only result in having half-time/poor performance in both areas.

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

I firmly believe that each college and university needs an “Expert” in the field of Emergency Management, Planning and Training. Most people find this area to be somewhat complicated, and because it deals with several cross boundary issues such as Disaster Preparedness, Information Technology, Emergency Response, Hazmat, Training, etc., it can get overwhelming.

Committees do not work in this critical functional area; they have a tendency towards inaction, and no one feels responsible for accomplishing specific tasks. A committee can be a great advisory and assistance tool, but you need to appoint a specific person and to have that person coordinate all planning, preparedness, training and other duties concerned with the emergency management tasks.

There are several key factors you need to consider in appointing a person to this job: First and foremost find somebody who is really enthusiastic about the job. You need to select an individual who is really interested in this topic, someone that is fired up, and will devote the time and effort to a good program. The issue of rank or job title within the college or university is immaterial to the selection of the right person. Remember to have them create a Back-Up Person or alternate.

The chief executive of the campus needs to really back the program by supporting this person. They need to make it known, in no uncertain terms, that they support this person’s efforts wholeheartedly and that anyone who doesn’t help out and assist in our program manager’s efforts will encourage the ire of the chief executive.

The chief executive cannot just pay “lip service” to their support of this program and the program manager.

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TRAINING The chief executive, along with all the other executive staff will need to contribute their most precious asset, their time, to attend training sessions and drills in order to publicly display their support for the program. Nothing shows commitment and support like having the chief executive and the executive staff sitting in the class taking notes and cheering the program on. This clear message of support will echo through the campus better than any memo or written directive.

The program manager will need to acquire equipment and supplies for the campus and they will have to go to some schools, trips and seminars to stay current on this critical topic.

They will then come back with training ideas along with new policies and procedures that need to be supported by the executive. Nothing will burn a person out faster than thinking you’ve got all the critical information and want to do a good job, and then finding out that no one in the campus administration wants to act on or help out with your program or spend the time, effort and funds to help you do a good job. It is the “lip service” disaster waiting to happen.

The person selected has to have above average public relations skills, along with an ability to work with such divergent groups as students, faculty, staff, citizen groups, media, etc. They have to show an interest in the other emergency services of law, fire and medical, and be willing to learn all about their systems and how they operate in a major event.

The person needs to be seen as the campus’ point of contact, a single responsive person who represents the campus and can help out with any issues generated by the above groups and who can attend emergency management meetings as the campus representative. These other agencies will recognize this person as the campus in house expert who is up to speed on emergency management issues and who they can contact with information. Our campus emergency

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management person will then be responsible for the timely dissemination of any critical information regarding pending emergency issues.

This person should also be picked for their willingness to train. They have to be able to keep the rest of the campus informed on the “hot button” issues and trends, along with training us in how to respond to these incidents. They will have to coordinate all of the readiness efforts of the individual building managers throughout the campus along with conducting drills and exercises to test the college or university’s state of readiness.

The Vertical Training Approach with Each Campus Group Having selected our program manager, we can now approach each of the separate groups with a training program tailored for that specific group.

Considering this vertical approach, we’re going to work from the top down starting with the Campus Executives. If you’re intending to try and implement any kind of an Emergency Management Planning or Training Program on your college and university campus without the express buy-in and wholehearted support from the Campus Executives you should really stop now.

The overall setting of your campus priorities, along with the allocation of funds and personnel, is the key function of the chief campus executive and the other members of the campus executive management team.

The leadership exercised by the chief executive and this team is the single predictor of success for a comprehensive emergency management planning and training program.

Emergency Management for Campus Executives (8 Hours) Audience: College and university administrators The chief executive of a campus along

with the other members of the executive staff has sometimes been left out of emergency management training and drills. Their position within the college or university puts severe demands on their time, and their ability to participate in routine emergency management training is usually problematic. It has been our experience that when a significant emergency occurs they often times feel unsure of their actual role in how they can best be utilized during the event.

Through a properly conducted training class they can be shown the “best practices” of emergency operations for executives and how they can reach their true potential to be of significant assistance during an emergency event.

This 1-Day, eight-hour course designed to familiarize the college or university campus executives with the concept of utilizing the Critical Incident Response protocol and the national standard Incident Command System to manage a large-scale emergency event. This one day class is designed to be taught to your specific executive management group responsible for policy decisions at the highest levels of the college or university.

This class is designed to give an in-depth explanation of the exact role of the executives and how their talents and skill sets can be utilized most effectively during a major event.

This course will aid the participants in their understanding of how the campus Emergency Operations Center should be run, and through a series of in-class practical exercises the participants will be given the opportunity to actually practice these critical skills and tasks.

The Campus Emergency Management Team (16 hours) Audience: Campus managers from public safety, engineering, maintenance and administration charged with the actual conduct of operations during an emergency on the campus.

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

TRAINING Every college and university needs to form a specific Emergency Management Team. This team is composed of the specific mid-level managers and administrators who would come together during a crisis event to actually run the emergency operations. This team is designated by the chief campus executive and is usually comprised of the managers from the above listed audience groups, along with other key campus personnel such as staff from human resources, finance, legal, etc. This group should not only encompass the primary members but the alternates from each of the selected groups within the Emergency Management Team.

This two day training course is designed to prepare the members of the college or university Emergency Management Team to respond to a significant critical incident on the campus. Participants will learn the four-step Critical Incident Response Plan as an all hazards approach to managing large-scale emergencies.

Through a series of increasingly complex practical exercises, the participants will have the opportunity to apply this plan to a large variety of critical incidents on the campus.

Each participant will be given a copy of the manual, Emergency Operations on the College and University Campus, as a primary reference document for this class. This manual will also serve as a guide for future drills and training conducted on the campus by our program manager.

The Campus Building Managers (16 hours) Audience: Building managers, alternate or assistant building managers, residence hall managers, and floor wardens for every building on the campus.

A significant number of emergency events on the college and university campus are restricted to a single building. The key personnel that everyone looks to during a crisis within a building are the designated Building Managers. Public safety resources

on the average college or university campus are stretched woefully thin.

The Building Manager is the person everyone will try and contact to find out what’s going on and what they should do. The Building Manager will be in charge until available public safety resources arrive. The decisions they make at the onset of an emergency can have a critical impact in how well or how poorly the emergency is handled.

Often times the title of Building Manager is administrative in nature and only concerns minor maintenance issues within the building.

It has been our experience that in most college or university campuses the Building Manager’s position is completely left out of any emergency management training. Because of the critical nature of the Building Managers position, they can have a significant impact on the initial emergency response.

By training the Building Managers and their other staff members such as Assistant Building Managers and Floor Wardens how to properly handle emergency situations, we can significantly increase the numbers of our emergency staff trained to handle emergencies and who can step up to help out during an actual critical incident or emergency. We will be able to provide a significant number of people who both know the local building and who are closest to the emergency scene trained to assist other first responders from Fire, Law Enforcement and Emergency Medical Services.

This two day class will conduct a complete review of all of the emergency systems present within a public building. The participants will also receive a review of the emergency actions for the building managers during the five major threats (fire, hazmat, flood, earthquake and gunman/violent intruder) and then a series of practical exercises in which the participants will be tasked with managing a series of increasingly more complex critical incidents

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

within the building.

All of the participants will be trained on and given a copy of the Emergency Flipbook which contains all of the critical actions to do during these emergencies events along with the Critical Incident Checklist. They will also receive a copy of the manual, Emergency Operations on the College and University Campus, as a primary reference document for this class. This manual will also serve as a guide for future drills and training conducted on the campus by our program manager.

Emergency Orientation For Certificated Staff And Faculty (4 hours) Audience: All campus certificated staff and faculty members Even though they don’t realize it, all of the certificated staff and faculty members on the campus of a college or university are regarded as emergency management personnel. When some form of emergency or critical incident arises, the students look to them for immediate guidance and leadership.

In our vertical training program it is imperative that we include certificated staff and faculty members in our emergency management program.

The more information they can relay to groups of students and other staff members in a crisis, the better the crisis will be managed. This group forms the largest contingent of working persons on campus and we need to include them as the significant stakeholders that they are in helping to manage an emergency situation.

This four hour class is designed to familiarize campus faculty and staff with the Emergency Flipbook and the emergency procedures for each of the five major campus events above, along with the procedures for assisting in a safe building evacuation.

Everyone participating in the class Continues on Page 39

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PERSPECTIVE

Leadership in a Police Agency

D

espite the myriad of books, articles and research papers written on the topic, “leadership” is a subject that draws comments and opinions from the top down within any organization. The subject rarely gets old, and there is consistently something to learn from its application by “them” from the standpoint of both positive and toxic leadership examples.

Depending on one’s level of self-awareness and humility, one can learn a great many things from others about how to do it right. In the course of my own experiences and exposures to leaders in both police and military organizations, I have witnessed people I seek to emulate and those I specifically intend to cast aside, whether by direct interaction or casual observation on either end of the spectrum.

And, for the sake of not judging others or seeking perfection, “leaders who are widely applauded as exemplary … [are not] … without their occasional toxic chinks”1 (Lipman-Blumen, p. 6). I do believe leaders need to be shown forgiveness and given grace by the very nature of their positions, but I also advocate that leaders need to realize their positions are designed to serve others.

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a leaders’ course sponsored by the U.S. Marine Corps for military commanders. During this two-week program, I experienced the floodgates of knowledge open and pour forth with the experience of countless senior military officers who have been in leadership positions and have had to face seemingly insurmountable challenges – and, many who have had to address issues and circumstances very similar to those I observe in my workplace. I was humbled more by what I did not know, the things I had never considered or envisioned, and in hearing the stories of others.

mark for all persons under their charge at all times – this concept is straight statistics. However, there is a big difference between the 80-90% mark versus a percentile in the ‘teens and 20s not worth discussing.

I do hope many of us within the system choose to contribute regularly to this magazine. I intend to do so. In writing articles for each quarterly publication, I intend to present leadership concepts for consideration by anyone in a position that has the ability to influence others. By the very nature of his/her position within a group, a leader can drive his/her subordinates to the positive or the negative side of the scale.

As a final note, I present an additional question for your consideration; this is the same question I am compelled to ask of myself on a regular basis: Where do I stand in the face of leadership amongst my peers, subordinates and senior command staff officers?

Failing to ask only puts one’s own respectability and credibility at stake. Do ego and humility override one’s leadership posture, or can one be comfortable with where he/she stands? What does he/she independently bring to the table?

There are many great men and women that have lost their lives in pursuing their dreams of engaging in the law enforcement profession. In all fairness to them, we have a duty to honor their sacrifice and do what we can to live up to the ideals of the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics to which we each initially swore.

by Troy F. Liddi

Troy F. Liddi is a patrol sergeant at San Francisco with 10 years of police experience. Troy also serves as the training administrator for the department Of specific note, during a presentation on the ethical with a variety complexities of command, I was stricken by four quesof administions I thought touched upon the heart of loyal follower- trative roles ship: and other collateral duties.

1. Can I trust you?

He serves as 2. Will you be fair and compassionate, but firm? a lieutenant colonel in the 3. Can you bring order out of chaos?

United States 4. At the end of the day, can you inspire me?2 Marine Corps Reserve and served a combat tour in Iraq during 2009-2010.

It is fair to note that a leader will not necessarily hit the 1 Lipman-Blumen, Jean. (2005). The Allure of Toxic Leaders: Why We Follow Destructive Bosses and Corrupt Politicians – and How We Can Survive Them. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

2 Author’s notes, Commander’s Course and Spouses Workshop, Quantico, VA (17-28 October 2011).

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Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

INTEREST

Restoring CHP #8131

E

arlier this year I set out to find an old police vehicle and “restore” it to in service condition. I did not have too many limitations in mind, but did not want the car to be from a small, unknown agency, and also wanted it to be relatively inexpensive.

I searched eBay, used police vehicle dealers, and government auction sites for many weeks, but came up largely empty. The cars I found were either in terrible condition, with body damage, peeling paint, or torn up interiors. I looked for some time at various versions of Mustangs and Camaros, but, since I already own a 1990 Santa Clara District Attorney Investigator Special Service Package Mustang, I thought this should really be a marked vehicle. All the marked Mustangs and Camaros I came across were too expensive.

I told the seller I would think about it and headed home. After wrestling with a number of thoughts I offered the seller his reserve price and he ended the eBay auction. Two weeks later I picked up the car.

Eventually I located a 1991 Ford LTD Crown Victoria, formerly California Highway Patrol Unit 8131 on eBay. The seller had bought the car, had it repainted in CHP scheme, and had some of the period correct equipment installed on the car.

While my car came with a correct center mounted red light, two correct spot lights, a correct shotgun

I watched the auction end, and when the reserve price was not met, contacted the seller and asked if I could come see the car, which was located in Northern California. Before I had a chance to connect with him to see the car he had relisted it on eBay. I made the trip anyway and looked at the car. It was in decent shape, though certainly a “used” police car.

In the mean time I had made some important discoveries. Unlike most agencies that use off the shelf equipment, CHP used, and still uses, a GE RANGR radio/controller system in their cars. This unit, which features a control head on the dash, and a variety of controllers in the trunk, controls everything from headlight flasher, to shotgun lock, to radio frequencies. This equipment has not been manufactured for approximately ten years, and the CHP currently reuses everything. The long and short of it is, there is no way to obtain the correct RANGR equipment.

action would be to use a current remote mounted controller, so that I could hide it in the glove box, with a trunk mounted control box to run the lights. I settled on a Whelen HHS2200 Unit. I obtained a period correct “Streetsweeper” flashers for the headlights, a period correct Uniden MR8100 scanner (though I had to improvise on the bracket), a period correct shotgun lock, and a new flasher for the deck lights.

While I debated making a period correct particle board rack in the trunk to hold the equipment, I eventually decided to modify a Havis trunk rack to fit this car. I went this route because it is far easier to work with, and none of the equipment mounted to it would be period correct anyway.

The process of disassembly and reassembly lasted approximately three weeks, working before work and on the weekends. The car was stripped Continues on Page 36

rack with utility light, and correct deck lights, that was it. No headlight flasher, no proper shotgun lock, an incorrect RANGR control head, no scanner, and absolutely nothing to tie it together.

I decided the best course of

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PERSPECTIVE

TLOs & the Soft Target, Universities

I

f you are like me, you remember where you were on 9/11.

And, you knew the world would never be the same. It continues to be a dangerous world, even with Osama Bin Laden dead.

His second in command has taken the reigns with others ready, willing to continue the fight against the United States and our allies. And, more often, home grown violent extremists (like the Times Square bomber) with the same mindset as Al Qaida or other elements like the Sovereign Citizen movement plot, reconnaissance and wait for their opportunity. Should universities be concerned? Yes! The people out in the world wishing to do harm to the U.S. way of life are people looking to harm us the easiest way possible, affecting a large number of people and bringing notice to themselves and their cause via an all-too-willing media.

Terrorists watch for

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openings in the security of the locations and can be pretty savvy about how they conduct their reconnaissance. These aren’t the type of people with whom police can negotiate or our government buy off or appease through diplomacy. In the terms of foreign terrorists or home grown extremists with similar ideas, this is a generational war – if I can’t hurt the United States, then the son of my son will ….

University police officers, police supervisors and police administrators need to remember Columbine High School and Virginia Tech University. These crimes occurred at places of learning. From K-12 schools to junior colleges and universities, these places of education are considered “soft targets,” being exploitable, lightly defended (if at all) and assailable without special weapons or ordinance. Schools, colleges and universities are targets. Between 8-5, Monday through Friday vulnerable

groups of defenseless persons are packed into highly populated locations that are open and easily assailed. The presence of armed defenders familiar with the campus is generally light or not immediately present. Masses of persons fleeing the areas surrounding any strike will add confusion to those responding to the incident, allowing more time to carry out the assault before armed and organized resistance can be expected.

Survival of those initiating the attack is inconsequential.

In 2000, terrorists were discovered to have been in possession of property and building plans for an entire school district in San Diego. The terrorists recognize ripe opportunities, and they conduct much more research and preparation than most persons wish to recognize.

So, what can universities do?

We live in an society bewe choose is a defin-

open cause to. It ing

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PERSPECTIVE characteristic of the American way.

In fact, experts suggest, continuing to maintain our open society is an excellent means of showing terrorists worldwide that they cannot and will not change our way of life. But, there’s a price. We remain open to attack. Therefore, we must be vigilant in preparing and recognizing the signs of potential or imminent threat.

It is difficult to give a single answer of how to protect our universities.

In the opinion of this author, some ideas are: 1. Train. Columbine and the unfortunate police agencies that responded to Columbine (and all of us since) learned the need for the active shooter response model.

For many of us, this was (and remains) a significant change to our traditional response in order to establish a perimeter to contain a threat to our community. Learning to effectively respond to and address an active shooter incident is an important tactical shift, one which must be revisited often in our training and maintained consistently across agencies expected to respond to provide mutual aid.

2. Organize. This is easier said than done. Our university police administrators need to meet with and plan with outside agencies. Let’s face it: On certain days and at certain times the bad guys may be

up against only one University Police Department officer. While that officer has been trained to engage independently, he or she will need help. The need for surrounding agencies to know “the lay of the land” of your university is paramount. It’s not enough to simply know other agencies will respond.

3. Learn. Prior to joining the university police, I was interested in the realm of terrorism and became part of the Terrorism Liaison Officer (TLO) program.

These are officers trained to recognize the signs of terrorism. I continued my interest in the subject and the TLO program (taught by the Joint Regional Center, Los Angeles) after joining the University Police Department. I was afforded the opportunity to continue the training classes, and brought the information back to my coworkers. My administrators recognized this was important, and agreed to have a second officer go through the TLO training.

ered. The TLO is supposed to be the subject matter expert for a department. Every university police department should have at least one TLO. Universities are targets. From the large sporting events to the everyday number of students and visitors at the campuses, we continue to be an appealing target to the bad guys.

There are people out there now, training and watching. And, we are the first line of defense. Better to prepare now in order to recognize a potential threat than to discover the threat after it has actively engaged. Will your university be next?

by Officer Marc Godfrey Marc Godfrey is a patrol officer at San Luis Obispo with 15 years of police experience. Godfrey has previously worked as a policeman at a community college in the California Central Valley, and a municipal police officer for a California Central Coast city. His previous assignments have been: DARE, diversion, SRO, detective, chemical agent instructor and Resident Hall Officer. Godfrey currently serves as a TLO, FTO and Taser Instructor for San Luis Obispo.

Prior to joining law enforcement, Godfrey was a volunteer firefighter and an EMT1 for an ambulance service.

The TLO is not a secret agent. I don’t have the skills to hold 007’s luggage.

But, I now have the knowledge to recognize certain signs/evidence of terrorism and know what to do with what is discov-

Statewide tewide Union Police Association - Vol Vol. 11, Q1 Q1, 2012

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INTERVIEW

An Interview with Chief Nathan Johnson

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t was a dark and stormy night ... err, well … morning when I set out for Long Beach. As usual when it rains, my Ford Mustang had taken on water during the night, adding a wet, sloshing interior complication to the five hour drive. While I had given some thought to this interview and had even outlined several topics for discussion, I really did not know what to expect.

Sometime after complaining and/or offering one too many times my thoughts on matters possibly associated with SUPA, I found myself named as an alternate director for my campus, San Luis Obispo. Perhaps, this was the result of one of those offensive actions taken for defensive purposes … you know, one of those “keep your friends close and your enemies even closer” types of maneuvers. Maybe not. Maybe so. Whatever the case, I was thus named and titled, and in November last I was invited to attend my first union meeting.

It was there I met for the first time not only representatives from other agencies alleged to also employ police officers from the California State University Police system, but also, too, this guy they called the “Chief of Chiefs,” Nathan “Nate” Johnson.

I have to admit over the course of 23 years of employment with the UPD with more than five years of experience at three different campuses in the system, I still lack any real sense of esprit de corps or even affiliation with the officers from other campuses. It’s just there’s so little that actually ties us together and so very much that sets us apart, individually. So, the concept of there being a “chief of chiefs” seems foreign -- I mean, who is this guy really to me? He’s not my chief ’s boss; that’s some other guy that works up in the admin building. I’ve never heard from this guy: his name hasn’t appeared on any statewide directives or policies I’ve happened to notice.

What does he do?

So, it was on a holiday that I attended this union of newly recognized peers and this man whose title alone smacks of something maybe applied posthumously to the likes of William Wallace (Scottish Clan Chief ) or Louis Rooks (American Indian Chief ). Honestly, I had no idea of what to expect, but I will admit the “chief of chiefs” title seemed humorous enough to set my imagination adrift in the seas of absurdity. I do this mainly for entertainment, but sometimes I find it prepares me to

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Chief Nathan “Nate” Johnson at his desk

face the reality when it is eventually encountered. If my chief has clusters of five little stars on his collar, this guy’s going to show up not only with a galaxy of stars, but also garish shoulder boards that would impress El Presidente from your choice of the Banana Republics. Maybe he’d even have an entourage to look after his flowing cape, and someone would simply have to carry the portable boom box/PA system in order for his theme music to be heard at the appropriate levels. I envisioned a man of average stature who would rely upon platform shoes to rise above those near him. While he would speak in a squeaky voice, the PA system would be tuned to “True Grit” and the volume, of course, set to 11.

My imagination is quite colorful and, at times, reflects experiences which have led to a tendency toward pessimism and cynicism. Despite my occasional allowances to let these rise to the surface in order to create a whimsical imaginary show for my own personal entertainment, I’m rarely surprised when the truth is not too different than the fruits of my daydreams.

At the union meeting, Chief Johnson impressed me, and he failed to lend any authority to the substance of my unbridled imagination. First of all, he showed. He didn’t need to be there. It was a holiday. He wasn’t working.

The guy wasn’t full of himself – in fact, he was humble, and genuinely thanked each of us for the opportunity to stop by, to visit, and to share with us some of his perceptions, his visions for the future, and even some of the things that are driving him nuts. I found myself not only liking this guy, but secretly wishing he’d assemble a militia of guerrilla fighters and go on a campaign against Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

INTERVIEW a system that clearly needs some revolution. Sign me up!

I’ll carry the boom box.

I was really pleased to be so disappointed, and when Jeff Solomon gave me the opportunity to put together this magazine, I just knew Chief of Chiefs, Nathan “Nate” Johnson was the one person I wanted to interview and put on the cover of the first edition. In fact, I mocked up a cover and used it to sell the magazine concept – and, just for the record, no one will ever see that cover in its original format!

in the building, or ride out the weather for an hour or so in the car. Frankly, it was the two inches of water (and rising) on the passenger-side of my car that motivated me to get out and into the building. It was either leave or stay and use an empty Big Gulp cup to bail water. I chose to avoid the personal flooding issue, so I made for the building.

While I was dressed in a shirt and tie, I abandoned my sport coat in favor of a rain jacket. With my wife’s camera and a notepad clutched inside the jacket and the hoodie pulled over my head, I made an ungraceful run It was around the week of Thanksgiving when I started for it. As I approached the building, I dodged a pair of an email exchange with the boss of bosses, the capo dei Long Beach PD patrol cars while crossing the avenue. capi, the Chief of Chiefs. I initially expected a bit of I avoided the splash from their tires and forded a small reluctance on his part. One can only imagine the various river running through the crosswalk and made my way political minefields he must navigate on a regular basis. into the courtyard. There, I saw an immense boarded up Add to that recent demonstrations at the Chancellor’s area, which I figured was the main entrance damaged in Office, East Bay, San Francisco, and other campuses; a recent demonstration. At this point my pant legs were campus police-related use of force allegations and videos wet (from rain) and were beginning to stick to my legs. of it plastered all over the news and the Internet; another My shoes were soaked through, and I saw signs directing looming $100M budget cut; unsettled union contracts me to a temporary entrance I prayed was not around the trending toward impasse; and I imagine a host of other opposite side of the building. I was relieved to discover a issues. Then, there’s this guy (i.e., me), saying he’s a modest, almost humble temporary entrance off the side member of the UPD, is going to write up an article for of the courtyard. Inside, I spied a security guard weara new union magazine, and ing our patches and badge on a “Whad’da ya say there, Big Chief? white uniform shirt, surfing the Can I come down an’ ask you You always have look at whatever Internet with ear-buds stuck in some questions?” decisions you make, and ask: What is his ears.

Nothing of the sort. In fact, the totality of the benefit of the I entered and approached. DripChief Johnson not only seemed organization as a whole? ping. Disheveled. I set a few pleased to participate but ofthings down and tried as best fered to save me a fair bit of possible to look dignified, predriving by suggesting he’d be senting my badge and police identification at the same happy to meet me at a location closer to me. I have to time verbalizing the particulars and purpose for my visit. admit, that offer meant something to me and spoke He wasn’t impressed, and I didn’t blame him one bit. I volumes about his character. was asked to sign-in. The guard presumably called Chief Naturally, I declined. I really don’t mind a long drive in Johnson and informed him I had arrived. I was advised reasonably good weather; besides, I wanted to visit the to go upstairs, where I would be met.

Chancellor’s Office. It seemed, also, a more fitting venue If you have never been to the Chancellor’s Office, it’s to represent myself as a curious member of the UPD, worth a visit. Should you be asked to go upstairs and be wishing to learn more about both the office and the man met, you will find there are three directions in which you who’s operating the levers within it. may proceed at the top of the stairs. If you happen not Thus, on the dark and stormy morning of December to be met and you are visiting Chief Johnson, you turn 12th, I ventured southward, braving the elements and left and proceed straight into an area that appears to be the worst Los Angeles traffic imaginable. As a native a large, open office pool. The receptionist there is very from the area, I knew what to expect. I was reasonably pleasant and will assist you from that point on. The other prepared and I provided myself plenty of time. In fact, I directions lead nowhere good or to anyone especially arrived two hours early with a serious case of clutch foot helpful. from a 90 minute crawl over the I-405 Sepulveda Pass.

Despite being hours early (and more than happy to cool As I sat in the parking lot, staring into the Long Beach my heels in a dry waiting area), Chief Johnson seemed Harbor, trying to make out the bow of the Queen Mary pleased to see me and led me into his office. After offerthrough the driving rain, I tried to determine whether or ing to me a cup of coffee, Chief Johnson excused himself not I should just drop in early, seek shelter somewhere to collect that all-important source of caffeine.

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INTERVIEW Chief Johnson’s office seems a bit small in size, just enough room for the furnishings, the chief and maybe as many as two visitors under the best of circumstances. The office is humbly appointed. A nice enough desk with a credenza along the back with cabinets. No tufted leather, power chair or anything pretentious, though there is a large casted series of polished aluminum letters spelling out “Office of the Chancellor,” which I had seen in several of the offices on my way in. Oddly, there were several computers piled up between the seat I had selected and the other seat a second visitor might be invited to use. Upon his return, Chief Johnson apologized for the computers and explained he was asked to deliver them for examination. He went on to admit such tasks are asked of him because he travels frequently.

to engage in the interview. Over the next couple of hours, the chief would ignore telephone calls, notifications from his computer and smart phone, and engage himself fully in our conversation and my interview. It was, admittedly, a great deal of fun.

The youngest of nine siblings, Chief Johnson was born in California. His father was a blue collar steelworker, a foreman and strong union supporter with Bethlehem Steel and was responsible for the construction and maintenance of many of the large, high power transmission towers remaining in the Bay Area to this day.

His father’s business would eventually move the family from the Bay Area to Pennsylvania, providing a young Nate Johnson a self-described “bicoastal background.”

Johnson returned to California in the 1970s during As a his enlistformer ment in the “Thirty years from now you better computer be able to point back to at least one U.S. Army, forensic where he examiner, example where you changed somewas involved my interone’s life for the better. If you cannot in military est was do that, you wasted 30 years of your intelligence admittedand NCO life. You considered it a job.” ly perked, training. Folbut I lowing his managed term in the not to ask any particulars regarding military, Johnson attended college the associated investigation. Not my and university in San Francisco. In business; besides, they didn’t look like part, he funded his studies and basic any computers I had used recently. necessities as an employee of the Wall Instead, I asked the chief if he rouStreet Journal. Johnson explained tinely was involved in criminal inves- “the Journal” had originally been tigations. He told me he frequently delivered via U.S. Postal Service, contracts with some investigators, and he was invited to participate in who assist him with matters in which a transition program from postal to he is asked to address. While the carrier delivery. This organizational investigators are UPD officers, Chief shift proved to be a major change Johnson does not have any sworn and Johnson was responsible for staff working directly for him at the mapping the entire San Francisco Chancellor’s Office. area for carrier delivery. Describing this employment as his “early mornFor a good ten minutes, Chief Johning gig,” Johnson appeared to fondly son and I chit-chatted more-or-less remember this experience and his off the record. The man is affable accomplishments during this time. and very easy with whom to converse. I did not feel nervous, and I Originally, Johnson set out to earn was pleased he was more than happy a degree in architecture, and like to allow me to record our conversamany budding architects he has plans tion to free up my whole attention tucked away somewhere for his per-

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fect dream house. However, a friend got him involved in a two-year workstudy program associated with law enforcement. This experience would steer him away from archi’torture (as the students at San Luis Obispo refer to it) and into a life-long career in law enforcement, spanning four decades thus far – and, looking to have enough momentum to reach a potential fifth. Academically, Chief Johnson would begin this career by completing an associate’s degree in criminology and then soon after an undergraduate’s degree in organizational behavior.

After various law enforcement assignments, Johnson would become employed by the public safety department at the University of San Francisco, where he would quickly move up into supervisory and administrative positions. In cooperation with the chief of the San Francisco Police Department, Johnson transitioned the security department into a law enforcement agency, where the officers would have peace officer powers of arrest. It would be during this topic where Chief Johnson would first identify the contemporary buzz-word concept of “leadership legacy,” as a leading contribution to a significant organizational shift which remains well beyond his tenure. In this example, an important step in improving not only the overall services of the agency was accomplished, but equally important to him was identifying the employees (now police officers) benefitted greatly in both working conditions and career opportunities.

Chief Johnson would continue his education during this time at University of San Francisco, where he earned both a master’s degree and a doctorate in organization and leadership. After approximately ten years of service with the university, he would be visiting the wine country north of San Francisco (and, finding it very much to his liking), when he learned of the available chief ’s position at Sonoma State University. Johnson confided in me that he was enthusi-

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

INTERVIEW astic about the possibility and drawn to the area, but was fearful that “my VP [at University of San Francisco] would be really upset” if he learned that Johnson had submitted an application on a Sunday afternoon for the chief ’s job.

The police department at Sonoma State University had a history of promoting chiefs exclusively from within; however, Chief Johnson was able to secure the position, which he would hold for another ten years. It was at Sonoma State University Police Services Department where Johnson was able to continue to identify opportunities and make changes “in a positive way, to improve the quality of living [for his employees],” which he identifies as his model for leadership.

Chief Johnson would expand upon this philosophy and leadership strategy: When making decisions within the organization, we must consider the organization first. And, if we have a choice [among viable options], we choose the one where individuals, too, will benefit by it. You always try to get the buy-in and let people know this is not only going to benefit the organization but you [i.e., the employees], too. Sometimes you can’t [provide mutually beneficial options], but many times you can. You always have look at whatever decisions you make, and ask: What is the totality of the benefit of the organization as a whole?

Apart from his career in law enforcement, Johnson is a dedicated family man, who enjoys time away from work and with his family. He’s been blessed to have raised a family of four daughters, who in-turn have provided Chief Johnson with a title that is equally important to him than anything else, grandfather. Grandpa Johnson has three grandchildren; the youngest is two.

Many of our CRU members will remember Chief Johnson attending an important ceremony a few years ago, requiring that he leave his daughter’s

side during child labor. He told me it was a difficult decision to make, but Chief Johnson felt the ceremony and the leadership changes within CRU were important in which to participate and would set a tone for many years to come. Certainly, having learned of his most-recent granddaughter’s birth and his daughter’s continued good health as he was arriving at the event in San Luis Obispo was a moment of mixed feelings of joy, relief and some measure of profound regret; however, Chief Johnson knows his family understood his decision to maintain his commitment to the members of CRU. It would seem, too, the members of CRU recognized his sacrifice, and some have reminded him each year since on his granddaughter’s birthday that he was there for them on that important date.

tion remained open for a period of time before it was modified to be a two-year auxiliary assignment held by one of the existing chiefs within the CSU system. As a temporary assignment, the title of the position was also changed to “System-wide Police Coordinator.”

Following several terms held by other chiefs in the system, Chief Johnson accepted the temporary assignment as the coordinator in January, 2007.

Before his tenure would expire, the chancellor would determine the position would need to revert to its original full-time status in order to provide greater focus to various issues, including system-wide policies, compliance requirements, and audits.

It was Chief Johnson’s hope that several of the chiefs in the system would apply for the restored system-wide administrative position, “I am a big believer of having a On the topic but he was of titles, succession plan ... After all, a uncertain it must be any had principle role of a leader is to addressed at prepare those being lead to progress applied – some point and, the upwards in order to take on new that “Chief application of Chiefs” responsibilities and take on the due date was may be looming. leader’s role when they leave..” something Chief Johnmany of us son told me have grown he was peraccustomed to using and, perhaps, fectly happy up in the wine country at least one of us has had a bit of of Sonoma and nearby Napa Valley; innocent fun with exploring various however, he felt the system as a whole interpretive possibilities. However, would benefit much more greatly if it is not correct, and Chief Johnson the person selected for the position informed me (with a bit of a chuckle had experience at the campus level in his voice) the imprecise title causes within the CSU system. . some chiefs within the system mild In May of 2010, Chief Johnson to moderate irritation and discomfort. The correct title for Chief John- would begin in his role not as the “Chief of Chiefs” but rather as the son is, in fact, “System-wide Chief “System-wide Chief Law EnforceLaw Enforcement Officer.” ment Officer” for the CSU system.

The position to which Chief Johnson He remains uncertain whether any is presently employed was originally other CSU chiefs had competed for created in the mid-1990s. It was first the position; however, there were held by Chief Thomas Fitzpatrick, several outsiders that had made a run who would soon after being apat it. In the year and a half since acpointed accept an opportunity to cepting, Chief Johnson would admit establish a police department as the he is still adjusting to the position . chief at a new campus in the area In the hierarchy within the Chancelof Monterey Bay. Thus, the posi-

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INTERVIEW lor’s Office, Chief Johnson reports directly to the Vice-Chancellor for Risk Management and Public Safety. He has no sworn staff, but does seek assistance from investigators employed by the campuses within the system, as necessary. He explained, when there appears to be a conflict of interest on a campus where a criminal investigation must be addressed, he is sometimes asked to manage the investigation. According to Chief Johnson, there may be enough demand to justify full-time staff at his office, especially if any form of system-wide or regional hiring of officers begins to take place – this being one means of unification and cost savings the chief would use as an example during our palaver together.

system. I suggested to him (as an example) the CHP model, which would give greater accuracy to the presently imprecise “Chief of Chiefs” title. In reply, Chief Johnson told me, I have never believed it has to be all or nothing. There are other models that could work from an organizational development perspective.

I have some chiefs who come to me and say, ‘I don’t care if you call me a deputy-chief or captain or whatever . If it means creating a system where we can function together as a team, I don’t mind.’ There are some, of course, who will resist no matter what.

I’ve always been the type that doesn’t believe you have to give up your chief title to be a system. I’m not big on On the topic of unity of command, titles, either: we need to get away Chief Johnson explained to me that from that a little bit. You don’t have campus-level chiefs have two reportto have a system-wide chief either ing chains. The first is to their respecto have uniformity and consistency tive campus throughout president (or the CSU. “If you can hang in there and be designee) So, I don’t regarding day- strong and get through a little more need to be to-day issues. of [these difficult times], there will the systemThe second definitely be benefits for you at the wide chief is to him or the end of the tunnel.” concerning system-wide system-wide head chief and technito get consistency throughout the cal matters. Chief Johnson told me state. What I do believe is needed is he often collaborates with the chiefs central coordination of some sort. throughout the system and solicits their feedback as he seeks to establish Chief Johnson then referred back to the CHP model I had used, explainsystem-wide policies. ing how the regional deputy commisAs it exists today, Chief Johnson sioners run their areas independently, recognizes the system has many com- only there exists a single set of master plications, especially with regards to guidelines that have been established affecting system-wide changes toward to provide uniformity and consisuniformity. “Basic things need to be tency throughout the CHP organizaestablished. No doubt that whattion. Guidelines, such as these, do ever we try to do uniformity-wise not exist in our system at this time. throughout the CSU, I’m going to get resistance somewhere for it. If we On describing his approach to making changes, Chief Johnson identified were to implement a tech letter [on the importance of establishing goals a particular equipment requirement, and then moving forward with a firm for example], it’s going to require commitment to … some political capitol.”

Keep it in perspective. Try to make Various models exist, which would the changes you can make. You take provide Chief Johnson with more it in baby steps. Try to make the than enough political capital to make changes you can make without trying sweeping changes throughout the

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to overdue things to a degree where you end up falling into the cracks or loosing perspective of what you are really trying to accomplish.

Returning to the topic of leadership legacy, Chief Johnson identified these two goals as principle to his personal measure of success during his tenure as the System-wide Chief Law Enforcement Officer: We need to establish a system-wide sense of identity throughout the state. He explained, “Before you can begin asking for stuff, people have got to know you exist.” If you ask people at every campus in the system, you will encounter people who will be surprised to learn police departments exists on each campus.

The same is true when we reach out within the law enforcement community and to other potential resources both inside and outside of the CSU system. Resolution of this matter, the chief believes, relies upon us first picking up the ball and making the effort to move towards continuity on our own. He explained: “Before we keep going out to try to get the system to fix us, we need to recognize that we must fix ourselves first.” In so doing, we will become better recognized as a statewide law enforcement agency, and it will benefit us greatly when we begin to ask for things. Because we lack recognition today, we encounter obstacles almost immediately when we move for change.

Among many methods to address this statewide identity issue, the chief, focused on uniformity and continuity among our departments. The variances of the names our agencies use; the style of our badges, patches, and uniforms; the color of our patrol cars and the graphics upon them; our uniforms, gear and equipment; our ranks and the services we provide are all very different from campus-tocampus. These things set us aside and make us look very different from one another. As we move more toward a uniform, statewide agency our sense of identify will increase, which will open the door to greater opportunities for us to progress as a single, large

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INTERVIEW agency and address matters we will never be able to tackle so long as we remain fractured and independent.

Secondly, the chief wants to change the manner in which decisions are made at the Chancellor’s Office. He told me, “I want to make sure when folks here are making decisions that affect system-wide police stuff, they remember they need to check-in with the system-wide police or law enforcement or police or someone.”

Chief Johnson mentioned having numerous other less important goals, some of them fun and others merely appealing to his personal interests. He also admitted, “I have some internal issues to address here, I wouldn’t wish on other folks.” When asked about a time-frame in which he hoped to establish his legacy prior to retiring, the chief laughed and suggested: “I can go right now. So, I’m waiting to see what is going to happen. I think Jeff [Solomon] and I are learning to communicate better – if we can get the two heads together....

So, I think I’m going to wait a good while to see where things are going.

I’m not done.”

On preparing his position for a future system-wide chief, Chief Johnson told me: I am a big believer of having a succession plan. I will have people within the system applying for the job. By the time I am ready, I will have some people that will be prepared and ready to take on this role.

I think every chief should be looking for people to replace them – and everybody down the chain should be looking for people to replace them.

When there is a vacancy, there is no incentive to bring someone in from the outside if things are going well.

It [the organization] may have run okay, but the administration wants better or it wants different. After all, a principle role of a leader is to prepare those being lead to progress upwards in order to take on new responsibilities and take on the leader’s role when they leave.

I asked Chief Johnson whether he would sell the CSU police system as an option to a young person approaching him for advice on a professional career in the field of law enforcement. The chief said he would recommend our system and explained a major difference between CSU policing and that of most other state, county and municipal agencies:

In closing, the chief offered this message to us, the troops throughout the state serving their individual campuses: We are living through some really tough times. You need to be Rocks of Gibraltar, right now. I think in the future things will begin to change.

I know that many of us – especially those at the lower end of the pay scale – haven’t seen a raise in the last 4 years. I know there are people rooting for you. I know there are people trying. And, if you can hang in there and be strong and get through a little more of [these difficult times], there will definitely be benefits for you at the end of the tunnel.

You never get a chance to see people more than once [in the municipal environment]. I never knew the impact I had on somebody. One nice thing about university police is there are many ways of receiving feedback (and some sense of satisfaction) from a lot of different sources. One is knowing that people you interact with on Since the chief was over-due for a a daily basis are people who know meeting with the chancellor, we who you are. They know your name. agreed to end the interview there and They know where to find you. You exchanged well wishes to each other know them. There is a vested interest for the holiday season. on both sides to do the right thing.

In many reThere is a spects, I felt connection the interview between “Before we keep going out to try was successyou. They to get the system to fix us, we ful in that I are influneed to recognize that we must had a greater encing your understandfix ourselves first.” life as much ing of Chief as you are Johnson’s influencing position at the Chancellor’s Office theirs. It’s not about what you see on and the direction in which he would TV, it’s about your people skills. You like to infl uence all of our departhave more opportunities to change someone’s life [and see for yourself the ments. Like the chiefs for whom I have been employed over the years, I results than at other types of agenhave learned enough about the man cies]. by his words, demeanor, and candor In general, the chief explained he tells to feel confident in his goals and his … ability to lead in whatever capacity is everyone that enters law enforcement: provided to him. As an individual, I just plain like the guy. He’s clearly an Thirty years from now you better extrovert, well-spoken, and exhibits a be able to point back to at least one example where you changed someone’s refreshing sense of humor and a willingness to share his actual thoughts life for the better. If you cannot do on the matter at hand. In fact, I really that, you wasted 30 years of your life. You considered it a job. It doesn’t did get a sense that he had nothing to have to be every day, every month, or hide, and perhaps he said it best with a good humored chuckle: even every year. You should be able to go back and say, ‘Wow! Because of I really don’t have any hidden agenmy intervention in this guy’s life … das, unless I tell you what they are in look at how this guy’s life turned out advance so we can work together on … or, how this family turned out … them. or, how this community has reshaped Continues on Page 37 itself ….

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RETROSPECTIVE

10-6 on Memory Lane

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o, what happened? It seems as if I just ust started a job at California State University Northridge ridge (CSUN) yesterday. I was only going to stay a few years and move on. But a year ago I retired d with 30 years of service credit. Has it been a year already? The calendar doesn’t lie. So, here I am with the retiree prospective. I guess ess technically it’s the retrospective. ce In July 1981, I was hired at CSUN as a police my officer. I already had completed the academy at the San Diego County Sheriff’s Academy. ow Fourteen weeks long back in those days. How ix things have changed. Now the academy is six months or longer. Of course we thought wee had it tough and everyone who came after us (or went to a different academy) had it easy. I ce. I guess that’s built into the academy experience. ont had worked for a couple of years at Grossmont ecided Community College, Campus Police and decided I liked working on a campus. In 1981, the State was suffering through a recession and jobs were hard to come by. Three-hundred applied forr two openings. I joined 23 other officers workingg at our campus including the former dispatcher thatt was anged. hired with me. I guess that situation has changed.

The last hiring we did had less than a dozen applicants. aining My first day of work was interesting. My training ffiofficer asked; “So you want to be a police offi cer? Why did you apply here?” Thoughts raced ng ofthrough my head. Here I was with a training oice. ficer who seemed to think this was a bad choice. veryThe truth was that I was just smarter than everyme one else (ok, my prospective has changed some ng to since those days). Yeah, and I was only going ould stay a few years anyway and besides that, I could fix all those pesky little problems anyway. artIt was not all bad. I had a job. I had an apartment with an $800.00 stereo and a futon to sleep ing and on. I was attending college for next to nothing working with a great bunch of people. So why did ll, we my training officer think it was so bad? Well, us comwere not called police; at least by the campus d hidden in munity. We were called “Public Safety” and ack side of an old converted 3 bedroom house on the back where on or the campus. There were not even signs anywhere us even had around the campus that indicated the campus police. When the campus even bothered to talk to us we were referred to as “Campus Security”. m. Truthfully, I Our Chief was Ed Grace, and we hated him.

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Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

RETROSPECTIVE don’t think he liked us much either. He told me several times that “he was not here to make friends”. He was a retired captain from Los Angeles Police Department that must have had some friends in the department since about half of our staff was retired LAPD. Yet, he was always ready to make us feel like we were something less than real police officers.

CSUN had an agreement in policy that stated “All major crimes and any traffic collisions that occurred on campus would be investigated by LAPD.” CSUN was the pilot project for the CSU campus police system. The campus police existed prior to this project but not as POST certified agencies.

Our biggest crime problem in those days was car stereo theft. During the evenings several times a week, we would set up in the parking lot, using the trunk of our patrol cars as our desks and take ten or more theft from motor vehicle reports.

Community College District Police before being hired by California State University Police in Northridge. Stotler has worked as a patrol officer, field training officer, investigator, and sergeant before retiring in December of 2010. At the time of his retirement after 30 years of service, Stotler was supervising the Parking Division, K-9, Special Events, Traffic Safety and Enforcement, as well as the Firearms Training Unit. Stotler lives in Santa Clarita, California, and volunteers his time working with the Boy Scouts of America.

Editor’s Note: James and I have been good friends for many years, and it my hope he may regularly participate in providing content for the SUPA Magazine. If you know an annuitant of the California State University Police Department who may also be interested in contributing their history or retrospective, please encourage them to contact me at niteswine+supamag@gmail.com .

Prior to transitioning to a POST certified police agency, “Public Safety” worked under the director of Plant Operations. Our office was in a temporary building with the Plant Operations office. The first chief was a former UCLA officer. We used retired CHP cars without radio or dispatch. Calls were received by a secretary at the Plant Operations Office who then called the Steam Plant who blew a whistle at the top of the building. Hearing the whistle, the officer would then call the secretary to get information on the call. Thank heavens we don’t have that system anymore. Ok, that was before I worked there but not by many years.

Thanks for traveling down memory lane with me. When I retired we had Computer Aided Dispatch with real full time POST certified dispatchers 7/24. We drove police cars that are police package vehicles with full emergency equipment. We are our own department on campus and no longer report to Plant Operations. Best of all, we are in a permanent building at the front of the campus with a large sign that says “CAMPUS POLICE”. Things are not perfect and we should continue to strive to be the best we can be. But, many things are much better than they were in 1981.

By James Stotler Sergeant James Stotler (retired) is the author of A State Police, The History of California State Police Agencies, detailing the history and function of the State of California’s various law enforcement agencies. Stotler entered his police career as a student of Administration of Justice at Grossmont Community College and would later earn his master’s degree from CSUN in that same field . He was an explorer with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and attended several explorer academies, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Academy and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Academy. Stotler worked several years at Grossmont Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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TRAINING & TECHNIQUES

Techniques Review: Standardized Field Sobriety Tests

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our experience might vary. In so many ways procedures, techniques and numerous other aspects of the academy were left on the curb after I suited up and began my field training.

Certainly, the academy was a basis to my career as an officer; however, the real learning started (and hasn’t stopped) when I hit the streets.

If DUI investigations or the Field Sobriety Tests (FSTs) were covered in the academy, I cannot remember the associated learning domain, the testing or the practical examinations. I do remember my field training. At the time I was introduced to FSTs, I recall stopping a cyclist for minor violation. As I was going through my “T-Stop” routine with the offender, I recall my FTO stepping in and saying, “Hey, if you agree to something that’ll take 5 minutes of your time, I’ll see that this officer (me) doesn’t write you a ticket.

Sound fair?”

This was my first introduction to what I today refer to as the “Lazzarini Modified Field Sobriety Testing Technique.”

To be honest, the LMFSTT proved functional and over a few years contributed to dozens of successful DUI arrests.

Yet, if I had been better trained then, I’d have made a lot more DUI arrests over those same years.

Following a stint of special assignments that kept me sitting at a desk for a good number of years, I came into work one day and discovered I was a patrol officer again. Without ceremony, I was back at pushing around a patrol car and trying to figure out what all the switches and buttons on the equipment console did (frankly, there’s still a few I have absolutely no idea what they do).

It wasn’t long before I found myself putting my LMFSTTs to use once again after half a decade of being shelved. From my fill officer’s point of view, I’m sure it

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was a humorous (if not painful) experience to witness, but it got the job done. Later that officer would pull alongside me in a darkened parking lot. In a nutshell, he told me that he d gone to a DUI investigations sc he’d school a few months ago – best cl he’d POST class ever been to, and he felt I might like it, too. At the time, I failed to in infer then what he had implied plied, but I did ask to attend a DUI inve investigation class becau because it did sound good.

Who kne knew? The LMFSTT LMFSTTs are waaaaayy ooff!

In the ear early 1980s the National Highway Traffic Safety Adm Administration (NH (NHTSA) established th the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST), a scientifically validated battery of three tests administere administered and evaluated in a st standardized manner to oobtain validated indicat indicators of impairment aand to establish prob probable cause for arrest arrest. This was certainly news to me, and only one aspect of the training I felt was so compelling and eye-opening. Bundle DUI Investigat Investigations or (at least) SFST training in with the core training you send all patrol officers to in their first two years. It is, in fact, one of th the best POST classes I have attended.

Like any effective technique or pro procedure, reviewing the nuts and bolts of SF SFSTs is a good annual practice. The rema remainder of this article is dedicated to ju just that (In the electronic version of tthis magazine, the titles for eac each test are linked to associated tra training videos.)

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

TRAINING & TECHNIQUES – hold for 4 seconds) 8. Check for onset of nystagmus prior to 45 degrees (2 passes, one for each eye) 9. Check for vertical gaze nystagmus (hold for 4 seconds)

HGN HG NT Testing i Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus is an involuntary jerking of the eye that occurs naturally as the eyes gaze to the side.

Under normal circumstances, nystagmus occurs when the eyes are rotated at high peripheral angles. However, when a person is impaired by alcohol, nystagmus is exaggerated and may occur at lesser angles. An alcoholimpaired person will also often have difficulty smoothly tracking a moving object. In the HGN test, the officer observes the eyes of a suspect as the suspect follows a slowly moving object such as a pen or small flashlight, horizontally with his or her eyes. The examiner looks for three indicators of impairment in each eye: 1. If the eye cannot follow a moving object smoothly, 2. If jerking is distinct when the eye is at maximum deviation, and 3. If the angle of onset of jerking is within 45 degrees of center.

If, judging each eye independently, four or more clues appear, the suspect likely (88%) has a BAC of 0.08 or greater.

Instructions and Considerations 1. Prior to instructions check for eyeglasses and/or contact lenses 2. Instruct: a. “I am going to check your eyes.” b. “Keep your head still and follow this stimulus/my finger with your eyes only.” c. “Keep following with your eyes until I tell you to stop.”

3. Stimulus/finger approximately 12-15 inches from subject’s nose and slightly above eye level 4. Check for equal pupil size 5. Check for resting nystagmus 6. Check for lack of smooth pursuit (2 passes, one for each eye) 7. Check for distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation (2 passes, one for each eye Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

Walk and Turn The Walk-and-Turn test and One-Leg Stand test are “divided attention” tests that are easily performed by most unimpaired people. They require a suspect to listen to and follow instructions while performing simple physical movements. Impaired persons have difficulty with tasks requiring their attention to be divided between simple mental and physical exercises.

In the Walk-and-Turn test, the subject is directed to take nine steps, heel-to-toe, along a straight line. After taking the steps, the suspect must turn on one foot and return in the same manner in the opposite direction. The examiner looks for eight indicators of impairment: 1. If the suspect cannot keep balance while listening to the instructions, 2. Begins before the instructions are finished, 3. Stops while walking to regain balance, 4. Does not touch heel-to-toe, 5. Steps off the line, 6. Uses arms to balance, 7. Makes an improper turn, or 8. Takes an incorrect number of steps.

Research indicates that 79% of individuals who exhibit two or more indicators in the performance of the test will have a BAC of 0.08 or greater.

Instructions and Considerations 1. Instruct: a. “Place your left foot on the line” (real or imaginary) Continues on Page 38

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MEMBER PROFILE

Community Oriented Leadership

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ince 2003, Senior or ott Lead Officer Scott n Herrick has been minwith CSU Dominguez Hills. (This campuss is ur one of five campuses in our orsystem that do not have corior porals at present. The senior lead officers fill the gap byy providing field training fand leadership to other officers as well as serving ass the officer-in-charge whenn a sergeant is not on-duty.

Senior lead officers earn an extra stipend for these responsibilities.) Herrick’s assignments have d included patrol and field training officer. Herrickk is also the SUPA Direcs. tor for Dominguez Hills.

Finding the benefits of being assigned to graveee yard shift, Herrick is free during the day to coach his son’s baseball and football teams. “There is no greater feeling of hachievement than coaching and seeing the kids grow to love the sport,” says Herrick, “Positive reinforcement for kids at an early age builds confidence, moral, and se high self-esteem for these young players.”

As an adult leader in his community, Herrickk ng recognizes he is providing he a positive influence to the children, and he sees thee d results as the kids learn and m improve. “I know that I am doing the right thing,” and it seems the kids and their parents agree because the kids on the teams Herrick coaches return season after season.

“Coaching in my home community,”

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Herrick is pictured with both the football team (top picture at left) and baseball team (bottom picture at right) he coaches.

Herrick observed, “has led to great friendships with other coaches and parents. I highly recommend you make time and volunteer in your community, too.”

By Scott Herrick (This submission was revised for publication by the editor.)

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

ADVERTIZEMENT

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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CONTINUATION Continued from Page 21 (Restoring CHP ...)

as far as required to run wires and make the necessary connections.

During the process I located several areas where wires had been cut and reconnected (presumably when CHP installed and uninstalled equipment), and utilized those whenever possible.

After a few “trial and error” wiring problems, which had largely to do with the way CHP equipment is wired very specifically due to the use of the GE RANGR system, and two discarded Streetsweeper flashers that were bad when I got them, everything was up and running.

Someday, when the authentic CHP equipment becomes available, I hope to install that in this car, and set it up the way it really was when this unit was chasing speeders on our highways and byways. For now, I am happy with the outcome and look forward to showing the car at various Emergency Vehicle Car Shows throughout the State.

Graphics, antennas, paint, and hubcaps are period-correct. The license plate is a replica of the original issued plate for the cruiser.

by Max Schad Officer Max Schad is a patrol officer at San Luis Obispo with 7 years of service.

Aside from an interest in restoring police cars to their former glory, Schad is a badge collector and soon-to-be beekeeper.

Schad is a member of C.R.U. and the department’s traffic safety officer. In this latter role, Schad organizes and manages an annual D.U.I. checkpoint on campus. Prior to its decommission, Schad was assigned to the regional Narcotic Task Force headed up by the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement.

Similar, yet different, the RANGR control unit is not the correct model. Remote controls for lights and radio are hidden to provide a near period-correct appearance of the interior

A trunk-mounted Whelen HHS2200 provided a remote option to control lighting and radio features until period-correct equipment can be obtained.

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Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

CONTINUATIONS Continued from Page 29 (Chief Johnson)

Continued from Page 7 (Be a Part & Share in the Success)

The immediate question is by what means will the political capitol be generated to establish unification and conformity within our system in order to generate a greater sense of identity? If a statewide identity is key to moving forward (and it does seem reasonable) and the immediate steps rely upon us to shoulder the burden, I do wonder just where and how to start?

If there are campus presidents, designees and chiefs within our system that tend to run with scissors (some do) and refuse to play well with others (clearly, also the case), I can only think the only singular source of sufficient political capitol in our system may be Chancellor Charles B. Reed, Ed.D., himself.

magazine may certainly serve as a venue for opposing opinions and viewpoint articles. It just takes you to get started.

Got something to sell? Seeking to connect with someone on a particular study, project or task? We can build into this magazine a classified section to help facilitate these sorts of things.

Have I perked your interest in contributing to this magazine? I do hope so. I cannot do it alone, and I do not want to. If you wish to write an article, get started – no one is going to stop you. In an effort to be a helpful coach, I might suggest to you some of the following: •

Aim for about one to two pages of text. A little more is okay for feature or cover stories; less is certainly acceptable, too. Expect some editing; I can’t help myself.

•

Do provide me with some by-line information. Your name, rank and campus are bare minimums. I would really enjoy knowing a bit more, including: years of service, assignment, related special training or certifications, etc. If I need more, I’ll get a hold of you; but, more is better.

•

If you rely upon sources for quotes or ideas, let’s be certain to recognize and properly give credit to those sources. It’s the right thing to do. Hopefully, in time, you might be the one others out there properly give credit to when they seek to get published for themselves. We cannot copy and paste published articles from elsewhere without the publisher’s approval, but we can quote portions if we properly cite.

•

Pictures are, in fact, worth more than a thousand words. Highresolution pictures are even worth more. I can guarantee that many pictures received will get “shopped” in some way, either to fit it into the publication or improve it for publication. So, please don’t take offense if pictures get tweaked a bit.

•

As with written sources, it is always appropriate to not use stuff without permission. So, don’t use stuff you find on the Internet, unless you know it may be used free of copyright or license. And, if you know the photographer, let’s just get in the habit of making sure they get full credit for their work.

The follow-up questions, then, are: 1. Will Reed support unification? and, 2. If not, would he take steps to eliminate that possibility?

If rumors are to be believed, it appears Reed doesn’t and may already have decisively acted ... but, this may be best explored in a future article after things unfold or, as is so very common, such rumors are false.

However, there are potential sources of political capitol outside our system that may be tapped to affect change. These are areas your current SUPA President and his Executive Board of Directors are exploring....

by John Edds

In terms of publication opportunities, they exist. If you are handy with writing yourself and editing for others, I see a potential need for persons to assist with smoothing out submissions. Any persons out there with some photograph enhancement and/or graphics experience? I’m admittedly an intermediate with Photoshop and spastic with Illustrator, but I get by. You might be better; if so, I could use your help! In time, we may seek advertisements and marketing opportunities. If you have experience in these areas, you will be a huge help, indeed. Other opportunities will certainly be identified, and if you are interested in participating in a hands-on role, I’m willing to help you get involved.

However, the most pressing way you can help is to write. Write now!

by John Edds John Edds is a 23-year employee of the UPD, serving at Nothridge, Monterey Bay, and most-currently at San Luis Obispo.

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CONTINUATION Continued from Page 33 (SFSTs)

b. “Place your right foot on the line ahead of your left foot with the heel of your right foot against the toe of your left foot.”

(Demonstrate) c. “Place your arms down at your sides.” d. “Maintain this position until I have completed the instructions. Do not start to walk until told to do so.” e. “Do you understand the instructions so far?” (Confirm understanding) f. “When I tell you to start, take 9 heel-to-toe steps, turn, and take nine heel-to-toe steps back.” (Demonstrate 3 steps) g. “When you turn, keep the front foot on the line, and turn by taking a series of small steps with the other foot.” (Demonstrate) h. “While you are walking, keep your hands at your sides, count each step aloud, and do not stop until you have completed the test. Do you understand? (Confirm understanding) You may begin the test.”

3. Hopping to maintain balance, and 4. Putting the foot down.

Research indicates that 83% of individuals who exhibit two or more such indicators in the performance of the test will have a BAC of 0.08 of greater.

Whenever possible, use each of these tests in every DUI Investigation. Document your observations, especially those identified as specific indicators or clues. Certainly, you may include additional tests (e.g., Rhomberg Balance, Finger-to-Nose, Finger Tap or Finger Count, Hand Pat, ABCs, and Backwards Count) as you see fit. However, it is imperative to get into the habit of making your decision to arrest, based upon your observations, your training, your experience, and the driver’s performance in the Field Sobriety Tests (especially the SFSTs) before breaking out the Preliminary Alcohol Screening (PAS) device. The PAS is an excellent tool to have available in the field, but treat it like a safety net and never rely solely upon it as a determination of driving under the influence.

The PAS is, frankly, a crutch. A really good crutch, but a crutch all the same. I’ve seen too many officers simply go through the motions of a DUI Investigation with a patent objective to get the PAS results. I choose to conduct my investigations with the assumption the suspect will refuse the PAS, as many legal defense attorneys recommend.

One Leg Stand

The CHP, by the way, have an excellent DUI Investigation form (CHP 202S) you can fold in half and stuff in your breast pocket. This form has everything you need (including the SFST indicators) to perform a complete DUI Investigation. I recommend you designate someone from your campus to go down to the nearest CHP station and schmooze a stack of these forms from your friendly brothers (and sisters) in tan with blue stripes.

The suspect is told to stand with feet and heels together, arms at their sides during the instruction phase of this test. In the One-Leg Stand test, the suspect is instructed to raise one foot approximately six inches off the ground and count aloud by thousands (One thousand-one, one thousand-two, etc.) until told to put the foot down.

Arms must stay at their sides; the raised foot pointed forward so the sole is parallel to the ground. The officer instructs the suspect to raise their leg into position (and tell them to correct any issues), then instructs them to begin the test. The officer times the subject for 30 seconds. The officer looks for four indicators of impairment, including:

p Practice makes p perfect; be p prepared to demonstrate not ructions but also the test in court. Be only the instructions ur ability to instruct andd perform these certain of your tests flawlesslyy in front of the judge, the jury, and ttorney. If you are called to “walk the defense attorney. the line” in front of 30 or 40 people, you simply do not want to gaff it.

1. Swaying while balancing, 2. Using arms to balance,

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by John Edds Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

CONTINUATION Continued from Page 19 (Vertical Approach)

will be given their own Flipbook so that they can take it back to their normal workstation and personalize it to their specific environment.

further promote the educational effort. Clearly this is the largest group we need to educate and any inroads we can make within this group could show significant positive results down the road during a major event.

This course will also include a section on personal and family preparedness for emergencies along with an orientation to the safety systems included within the campus buildings.

When a student attends your college or university, or when a staff or faculty member joins your personnel ranks, they do so with the basic understanding that as college or university administrator’s we have planned for their safety during critical incidents and emergencies.

Emergency Orientation For College And University Students (2 hours)

By selecting and supporting a Program Manager and instituting a vertical training program that emphasizes the five critical groups to be trained, you can start well on your way to being confident that your campus could manage one of these events and insure the safety of your ff.. students, faculty and staff

Audience: Campus student community The student body within the average college or university can number several thousand at any given time during the day or night. The more effort we extend in our emergency management training efforts, to this largest group of our campus population, the better off we will be. Most efforts of student education in this area tend to lean towards student safety from potential attackers or thieves, and we seem to have completely ignored all of the larger more significant emergencies.

Simply putting out flyers or descriptive material regarding what to do in various emergencies will have a very minimal effect. By extending our educational efforts through actual classes and seminars in the area of emergency procedures during a wide variety of local emergencies, we can have a significant impact upon the preparedness and survivability of our students.

Our emergency management program coordinator would be responsible for conducting classes based upon the Emergency Flipbook. Outreach could even be conducted through student trainers and a Flipbook should be placed in every classroom and in the public areas throughout the campus. Some form of fee reduction or student credit could be given for class attendance as an added incentive.

Student associations, student government, fraternities and sororities could all be recruited to assist with the project on a continuing basis. Efforts could even be made to utilize campus facilities for large-scale emergency drills with local area first responders in order to

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

Thank you very much for your attention to this paper. If you have any questions or comments about this program, pleasee feel free to contact me at e. the below address. Be safe.

by John Kane Lieutenant John E. Kane, Jr. (retired) is a decorated officer and combat veteran of the U.S. Army (captain, ret.) and retired lieutenant of the Sacramento Police Department with 27 years of service.

Today, Kane is the managing director for D-Prep, LLC., a California-based consulting and training company focused on disaster preparation and emergency response. Among numerous educated, trained and experienced staff, Kane has literally written the book on emergency operations and has served on the California Governor’s Committee of Law Enforcement Specialists in the Standardized Emergency Management System.

D-Prep, LLC. 7485 Rush River Drive, Suite 710 Sacramento, CA 95831 916.761.9130 Ltjohnkane@dprep.com

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CONTINUATION Continued from Page 15 (Challenge Cup Relay)

of an incredible experience, please do contact me.

No bones about it, participation in the Challenge Cup Relay comes at considerable cost. Entrance fees, general supplies, athletic gear, uniforms, safety vests, van rental, fuel, lodging, command post/meeting room fees, water, ice, food, first aid supplies, etc., etc. The expenses really pile up into the tens of thousands. So, it is really important for us to recognize when groups, businesses, and even individuals provide support and sponsorship to our team. Our involvement wouldn’t happen if not for contributions we receive from our sponsors.  Statewide University Police Association has provided the team with a most-generous donation, and each of us on the team wish to extend our appreciation to all of the SUPA members throughout our system.  The CSU Running Team has also received a donation from our legal firm, Lackie, Dammeier & McGill, who specializes in the legal representation of police officers and their associations throughout California. We’re as happy to know they are supporting us in this endeavor, too!  West Pac Designs, a promotional clothier, has also pitched-in, contributing to the effort.

The team is outfitted with uniform shirts (and discounted warm-ups) provided by West Pac Designs, each with custom team logo.  Finish Line Towing & Transport of Long Beach hooks us up each year with a cash donation, which we use mainly to cover follow-vehicle rental fees and fuel.

Not all of our costs are covered by sponsorship. Individual members contribute, too. A lot. In fact, travel and lodging is not covered at this time for our members.

However, we do get discounts on our hotel expenses.

So, if you know of a business or individual who may be interested in providing some measure of sponsorship, please put them in touch with me. Nothing is wasted; everything appreciated.

In the future, I believe, we could win the entire race.

Sure, it’s a big goal. However, it is not unattainable.

Throughout California we have nearly 400 members, and I am certain within this group of police officers we can identify 20 capable of running below a 7 minute pace. It’s just a matter of finding these runners, recruiting them, and getting them to participate in the Challenge Cup Relay.

Yet, winning isn’t everything. Participating in the Baker to Vegas Relay has many rewards. This is why I would

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like to expand our participation by establishing a second running team in the future. This would allow for a competitive team (for the best runners) and a secondary team (for those whoo recognize the benefits and want to enjoy the experience xperience of the relay competition). This, of course, ourse, would provide double the opportunities ities for those wishing to participate as nononrunner support members, too. If we are successful in establishing two teams in the Challenge Cup Relay, I do believe ve we may be able to fully represent all campuses throughout the CSU system. em. I do believe that would count as a big win in many respects.

The Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay tive has been described as “the most positive fficers event offered to law enforcement offi cers ntain today. It gives them a reason to maintain elp a physical fitness program so as to help ver them better perform their duties. Over aker the 20+ years the Challenge Cup/Baker eds of to Vegas Relay has been run, hundreds nnel thousands of law enforcement personnel ginal have tread across the desert. The original k, ideals of the race continue: teamwork, mcamaraderie, physical fitness and competition” (from the official web site)..

As a multi-year participant and as a team leader, I could not agree more. Join up: be a part of our team in some way and let’s share in the rewards of this grueling yet incredibly ly nt. rewarding and enjoyable annual event.

by Mark Benavidez arge of Benavidez is a detective sergeant in charge the Threat Assessment/Special Crimes Unit at w enforceNorthridge. Benavidez started his law ment career at the age of 16 as a policee explorer do. Upon in his home town of Sheridan, Colorado. ez was graduating from high school, Benavidez promoted to dispatcher and held this position n until he attended the police academy in Littleton. Benavidez was first hired ass a police officer in the Denver Metro Areaa 01. and later moved to Los Angeles in 2001.

Benavidez has been with CSU Police at Northridge since 2002. Benavidez is the ce current team captain of the CSU Police n Running Team, competing annually in his the Baker to Vegas race. He has held this idez position for the last three years. Benavidez nce has run in every Baker to Vegas race since 2006.

Statewide Union Police Association tion - Vol Vol. 11, Q1 Q1, 2012

CONTINUATION 2012 Challenge Cup Relay CSU Running Team Team Captains/Directors

Campus

Captain

Benavidez, Mark

Northridge

Co-Captain

Secka, Lamine

San Diego

Com Director

Fields, Le

San Bernardino

Assignment

Runners

Campus

Leg 1

Pham, Viet

San Francisco

Leg 2

Velez, Ed

San Francisco

Leg 3

Magana, Juan

Monterey Bay

Leg 4

Panza, Yosarin

San Marcos

Leg 5

Caldera, Valerie

Los Angeles

Leg 6

Ham, Dave

Monterey Bay

Leg 7

Chief Reid

Channel Islands

Leg 8

Domaradski, Kris

Northridge

Leg 9

Morris, Mike

Channel Islands

Leg 10

Poe, Josh

San Diego

Leg 11

Broussard, Ron

San Diego

Leg 12

Peterson, Mark

San Diego

Leg 13

Griffin, Will

San Diego

Leg 14

Camp, Arnie

Northridge

Leg 15

Secka, Lamine

San Diego

Leg 16

Schivley, Chris

Long Beach

Leg 17

Millan, Alex

San Bernardino

Leg 18

Robbins, Chad

Long Beach

Leg 19

Millan, Danny

San Bernardino

Leg 20

Fonner, Chauncey

Fullerton

Assignment

Alternate Runners

Campus

Legs 1-5

Gonzalez, Raymond

Northridge

Legs 6-10

Solomon, Jeff

Sacramento

Legs 11-15

Julien, Nate

San Diego

Legs 16-20

Bedell, John

Follow-Van Drivers/Support

Fullerton

Campus

Matthew Vurhulst

Northridge

Jess Lopez

Fullerton

Fred Fernandez

Northridge

Borgstrom, Dan

Channel Islands

Huff, Rachel

Channel Islands

Cappuccio, Katie

Fullerton

Dan Price

Northridge

Ed Armenta

Northridge

Alfonso Valadez

Pomona

Vargas, Anthony

Northridge

Mike Reyes

Command Post

Northridge

Campus Patty Hackl

Northridge

Gina Tipre

San Bernardino

Lynn Rice

Channel Islands

Al Rice

Channel Islands

Vasquez, Monique

Dominguez Hills

Nickpee, Arthur

Dominguez Hills

Race Support Volunteer Dan Smith

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol Vol. 11, Q1 Q1, 2012

San Francisco

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CONTINUATION Continued from Page 6 (Surveys)

employees; ensure employees conduct themselves in a professional and ethical manner and investigate and discipline officers that may engage in misconduct.

Based on this standard, SUPA will use the aforementioned categories, to determine whether or not its members feel their leadership does the following:  Leads by example  Displays personal integrity, which inspires respect from the employees of the agency as well as the members of the campus community and the senior administrators  Is sensitive to the needs of the campus  Ensures all members of the campus community, regardless of protected status, receive equal protection under the law  Cleary articulates the mission and polices of the department Our goal is quite simple. Where leadership is proving to be successful, SUPA intends for the survey to provide a means of well-deserved acknowledgement and recognition. On those campuses where problems in leadership are identified, SUPA will seek opportunities to assist local administrators with improvements and resolutions, followed by reassessment later in the year to demonstrate a commitment to successful leadership at the departmentlevel.

Soon, each of us will be asked to participate in this year’s leadership survey. There are some changes and many improvements to the survey itself. Additionally, the means and methods of survey result reporting and dissemination have been modified for increased benefit and application at all levels. Your director has been briefed on this process, and you should contact them for more details.

Your participation is very important to the success and credibility of the survey results. Therefore, our goal is to achieve 100% participation. Your director should be a point of contact in the event you have any concerns or considerations regarding your participation in the annual leadership survey.

The survey will be published in two ways: 1. Publicly – this version of the survey results will include the average score received for each item of inquiry on the survey, the number of participating members, and overall rankings (in comparison to all statewide campuses). The public version of this survey will not include the analytical report or narrative responses provided by contributing members.

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2. Privately – this version of the survey will be provided to the SUPA Executive Board, the local director, and the chief of the respective department. This version of the survey will include all items contained in the public version plus an analytical report of finding and the narrative responses provided by the members.

Where the results of the survey indicate successful leadership exists, SUPA will provide a personal letter of recognition to the respective chiefs and publicly acknowledge those chiefs who are clearly striving to provide excellent leadership to their department and community. SUPA has special plans for the top 5 chiefs system wide, including: 1. Special certificates of recognition 2. Perpetual listing on a publicly-accesible web page on our site dedicated to this purpose 3. Each chief will be invited to be featured in our magazine, where they will be asked to share their philosophies and practices on effective leadership 4. Each will serve as a model recommended to others within our system who are seeking improvement and resolution opportunities Where the results of the survey demonstrate problems in effective leadership, SUPA will meet with the local chiefs and directors in order to identify opportunities for improvement. Six months following this meeting, the SUPA members at these agencies will be invited to complete a reassessment survey to identify improvements or continuing issues with the leadership of the department.

Unlike the annual survey (see above), the complete results of these reassessment surveys will be made public should the chief again fall below the set mean.

The ultimate goal of this annual activity is to recognize our leaders for the quality of leadership they provide to our campus communities and their respective police services agencies. Where improvements and continued dedication to successful leadership exist, SUPA wants to commend and celebrate those responsible. Where improvements are needed, SUPA wishes to identify areas in need of attention, offer meaningful and constructive recommendations for improvement as well as provide a means of measuring commitment, change and success in both the short and long terms. However, we cannot hope to commemorate our first-rate leaders or provide important counsel and advice on changes needed without your contribution to this important annual activity. So, be sure to participate!

by Daniel Borgstrom Borgstrom is a K9 officer, CRU member and SUPA director at Channel Islands.

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

TRAINING NEWS

Active Shooter for the First Responder Training

T

he CSU Channel Islands Police Department hosted an “Active Shooter for the First Responder” class on February 28th & 29th, 2012. The course was taught by best-selling author and founder of International Tactical Training Seminars, Scotty Reitz. Reitz is a 30 year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department with 21 years dedicated to training and serving along-side the department’s elite Metropolitan/SWAT division. Reitz’s staff is comprised of only current members of these elite units, who have dedicated themselves to training others.

This was an intensive two day course. The class focused on the reality behind what the majority of officers in the field are being faced with in regards to active shooters. Students learned the dynamics of responding with a “Nominal Numeric Response” (i.e., teams of 1-3 officers). History has shown us when responding to a live active shooter, officers are generally entering structures and/or engaging suspects in teams of 1-3 officers. The course included a combined lecture of tactics, theories, firing solutions, response mechanisms, communications and the physiological and psychological factors faced by the first responder. One day intensive live fire rifle training was incorporated to allow each participant to be able to solve complex firing solutions. The second day was devoted to tactics, cold runs from response to contact to resolution in a non-live fire format. Other factors covered during the course included weapons selection, attendant gear, weapons & gear set up, and rapid deployment to known or unknown threats.

To sign-up for future classes or to learn more about the instructors, please visit this link. Attendees receive an informational e-mail with logistical information (e.g., lodging, directions, etc.), several weeks prior to the class. This is a law enforcement only class, and spaces are limited. For direct feedback and information on how you might host a similar training event in your area, contact Officer Dan Borgstrom (at 805-404-0801 or daniel.borgstrom@csuci.edu) and/or Sergeant Shawn Bartlett (at 805-437-8963). Look for some tactical training articles based on information and experiences learned in future SUPA Magazine publications.

The “Art of Modern Gunfighting” is the newly released book written by co-founder and lead instructor, Scott Reitz and co-founder and Director of training, Brett McQueen. In a very short time it has become an overwhelming success and best seller because of its uniqueness and nonconformity to other gun books. For more information on this book, visit the ITTS web site.

Statewide Union Police Association - Vol. 1, Q1, 2012

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HEADING HE EA AD DIIN NG

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