How Police Officers Can Stay Safe While on Duty It’s no big secret that popular opinion about police officers falls into two opposing camps. While the majority of people out there believe that officers perform a vital duty by keeping the streets reasonably safe, a significant portion of the public tend to view LEOs (Law Enforcement Officers) as little more than roving armed thugs who cause more problems than they solve. But even most critics of the police will grudgingly agree on one thing: It’s a tough, dangerous job. Every day, our nation’s police officers put their lives at risk. Much of the danger simply comes with the territory, but far too many officers unnecessarily place themselves in hazardous situations—with occasionally tragic results. Police officer safety is a complicated subject, too much so to treat comprehensively in the space provided here. What we can do, however, is provide a number of simple safety tips that every officer should bear in mind while out on the streets. A lot of the material below will not be news to an experienced LEO, but it never hurts to ensure that these useful safety procedures aren’t forgotten. Call for Backup It’s a simple safety tactic that officers sometimes neglect—but why? There are a number of reasons why some LEOs tend to make a habit out of handling matters alone in the absence of an obviously serious threat. Often it’s a matter of misplaced courtesy: They simply don’t want to trouble another officer, especially if they’re a considerable distance away. In other cases, it’s a desire to avoid pulling officers away from other duties—an especially pressing concern with understaffed departments. Given that so many calls are routine in nature, it’s easy to see why a significant number of officers prefer to go solo. But certain types of calls—domestic violence disputes, man-with-a-gun sightings—can go south very quickly. To invoke some age-old wisdom, it’s far better to be safe than sorry. Wear a Seatbelt “Buckle it up” is good advice for anyone who gets behind the wheel, but it’s doubly true for onduty police officers. The average person rarely has a legitimate need to exceed the speed limit by a substantial margin or to weave wildly through traffic to get to a destination—but any officer manning a cruiser must be prepared to do just that at a moment’s notice. High-speed car crashes pose a serious occupational hazard, to put it mildly. Your seatbelt can be a lifesaver. Keep in mind, though, that seatbelts aren’t just about protecting car occupants from harm in the event of a crash. They also work to keep you securely in place while the automobile is in motion, which helps you maintain proper control of the vehicle even when making sharp turns. Don’t Neglect Physical Conditioning
The simple fact is that you’re much more likely to sustain serious injury if you’re overweight and/or otherwise out of shape. Additionally, it will take longer for you to recover from injury than a physically fit person who suffers a comparable degree of bodily harm. You’ll also be more likely to gain the upper hand during a physical confrontation with another party. It’s best to stay at a healthy weight and, if possible, keep up with some kind of routine physical training. Learn Self-Aid If you are seriously wounded out on the streets, help may not come quickly enough to save you—that means you must learn how to treat your own injuries out in the field. If you are hemorrhaging blood, you must know how to stop or minimize the bleeding until outside aid can take over. To this end, you should keep tourniquets and pressure dressings with you in a place where they can be easily reached, and you should know how to use these items. Blood clotting agents are also useful, but make sure that these aren’t past their expiration date.
Traffic Stop Tips Consider a passenger-side approach – It’s standard to approach vehicles on the driver’s side, but you may wish to go around the other side, at least some of the time. Meeting the driver at the passenger window can save you from being struck by a passing vehicle on the road. Use the lights of the patrol car during nighttime stops – After you’ve pulled over a vehicle, your high beams and spotlights can play an important role in discouraging ambushes and other misbehavior on the part of the driver. All that intense light helps to conceal the position of the police officer as they approach the stopped vehicle. Try to ensure that your lights reflect off the vehicle’s side- and rearview mirrors. Turn the wheels of the patrol car to the left – This could save your life in the event that a passing car or truck rear-ends your car while you are approaching the pulled-over vehicle. By turning your wheels in this direction, your patrol car will likely veer away from you if struck. Guard Yourself against Pathogens Bullets and speeding cars can cause severe physical harm, but there's another type of health threat that too many officers ignore—because it's microscopic in nature. Pathogens cause disease
and other major health issues, and it’s important to know how to guard against infection from these agents. Persons who are bleeding or seriously ill can pass on dangerous microorganisms that cause AIDS, hepatitis C, meningitis, tuberculosis, and a host of other unpleasant diseases. Because police officers sometimes come into close contact with these kinds of individuals, they should use high-quality personal protective equipment to shield themselves from potential harm. N95 respirators are lightweight, portable, easy to use, and capable of providing effective protection against airborne pathogens. In addition, disposable latex gloves can protect the hands from infection when it is necessary to apply first aid or carry wounded persons from one area to another. Learn to Manage Threats from Dogs Every year, a non-trivial number of officers get attacked by dogs while out in the field. Many of these incidents can be traced to officer actions that inadvertently threatened the animal, provoking the attack. Keep in mind that dogs are not people, and that they must be treated differently. For example, making eye contact with an aggressive dog is a bad idea—you may think you’re exerting control over the animal, but dogs tend to see such behavior as menacing. Instead, use a method proposed by the American Humane Association.1 Look away from the dog (while carefully watching them with peripheral vision), and then slowly turn your body sideways to them. These actions usually succeed in reassuring the animal that you pose no threat. Systems Technologies provides first-rate police dispatching services via its VisionPro Wireless Emergency Call System®. Contact us for more information. Sources 1. http://www.charitywire.com/charity9/05107.html