Confront an armed man with a hostage in the Ann Arbor Citizens' Police, Courts and Fire Academy
A dispatcher sends you and your partner to a restaurant where there's some sort of disturbance between a man and woman. It is possibly a domestic dispute (or family fight) and is said to be heated. You arrive at a crowded diner and hear a loud argument between a man and woman.
The male portion of the dispute sees you and reacts by pulling a revolver from his belt, grabs the woman and places the gun to her head. He yells to you, “Back off cop or I’ll blow her head off!”
A participant in the citizens' police academy takes aim.
This would constitute a bad day at the office for a police officer. What are you going to do, officer? Hurry up, make a decision — what are you going to do? What are you going to do?!!! Do something officer!
What you decide could save a life, take a life or both. Your decision has to be made immediately. Your decision could make you a hero or send you into a life-altering spiral of guilt, depression, financial ruin and perhaps even a jail cell. What are you going to do, officer?
The oath you took, the badge you wear and the pistol on your hip — which is hopefully in your hand by now — are proof that society trusts you in times of crisis to make such a decision. Thankfully, this is not an every day occurrence. This is a cop’s nightmare scenario.
This scenario could be yours to decide if you enroll in the Ann Arbor Citizens’ Police, Courts and Fire Academy.
Luckily, you won’t face life-altering guilt, depression or financial ruin. You will only face an instructor’s praise or question like, “OK, that was one way to handle it, but you shot several diners, and the bad man got away with a hostage. What might you do differently next time?”
That scenario is part of Firearms Training Simulation (FATS) that officers use. If you attend the Citizens’ Academy, you will be able to try your hand at handling an armed confrontation on the FATS system at Washtenaw Community College.
Citizens' academy participants use the FATS simulator at WCC.
Your heart won't be thumping quite as hard as a real armed confrontation, but knowing that instructors or classmates are watching, the pressure will be on you to perform properly. You will be nervous, but no one will get hurt and perhaps you will gain an appreciation for the roles police officers, firefighters and court personnel play in keeping our community safe.
The Ann Arbor Citizens’ Police, Courts and Fire Academy is a 10-week program starting March 22. It runs through May 31. It's a one night a week commitment from 1830 to 2130 hours (might as well get used to military time if you're going to attend. That’s 6:30-9:30 p.m. for the rest).
These academies are a great idea. The instructors enjoy educating and interacting with the citizens. For their time, the participants get an up-close and personal education about what public safety is all about. They might even hear some great insider’s tales from the instructors.
For more information, check the City of Ann Arbor website http://www.a2gov.org/government/safetyservices/Police/Pages/GettingInvolved.aspx or call academy coordinator Adele El-Ayoubi at (734) 794-6933.
Applications for the Citizen’s Academy must be submitted by Feb. 25, and it's filling up fast, so don't delay. This is a great opportunity, and I guarantee it will be informative and well worth the time commitment.
Lock it up, don’t leave it unattended, be aware and watch out for your neighbors.
Rich Kinsey is a retired Ann Arbor police detective sergeant who now blogs about crime and safety for AnnArbor.com.
Comments
cholak
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 1:06 p.m.
Rich, will you return and spin some of your great tales for the class.....
RJA
Fri, Feb 18, 2011 : 1:34 a.m.
Using Federal grant funds for this? I don't like it at all, use these funds to get more officers and firemen in the county. Or perhaps give a raise to the good ones we already have. i would rather see citizens enroll to ride in the officers car, just one day on any shift.
anti-thug
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 6:29 p.m.
When was the last time a cop want to jail for shotting a crimeal ? you see ...don't worry and hurry .
Boo Radley
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 4:39 p.m.
A perfect opportunity for the regular posters here who like to bash the police at every opportunity and call for drastic cuts in their pay, benefits and retirement to actually find out what they may be knocking. It is events like the hostage scenario that point out the old adage that cops do not get paid for what they do ... they get paid for what they are willing to do, and may be called upon to do.
Michael Schils
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 2:17 p.m.
Hostage situations are extremely rare. So to say that the scenario described provides a fair sampling of a cop's daily routine is a bit of a stretch.
Michael Schils
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 4:57 p.m.
No, I said that hostage situations are *RARE, I didn't say that they never happen. Big difference. Please respond only to what I actually say, not to what you think I'm "trying" to say. Of course I agree that cops should be trained and prepared for any situation, regardless of how rare. But this article isn't about the need for officers to receive such training. It is about putting citizens in mock situations that an officer may someday face (but most officers will never face in their entire career). I was only replying to anonliberal's "challenge" (to "anyone who "thinks" they know what cops and firefighters do to sign up and get educated") because I felt it to be a bit over the top considering the relative rarity of the described hostage scenario. I regret if my mere urging to put things in perspective has raised the ire of the "blue" crowd around here. That was certainly not my intention.
DFSmith
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 3:31 p.m.
Michael, are you trying to say that something like the hostage scenario will never ever happen in our fair city, and AAPD officers, therefore shouldnt train for that possibility?
Michael Schils
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 3:08 p.m.
I was actually replying to anonliberal's "walk a mile in (their) shoes"-comment. I'm not looking for a reason to hate.
Matt Cooper
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 2:52 p.m.
I've read the article and don't recall Det. Kinsey saying anywhere that the hostage situation is part of a cops daily routine. Maybe you're just looking for a reason to be a hater?
aanonliberal
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 1:03 p.m.
It's a federal grant fund and a great educational tool so that ignorant rants on blogs can be overcome. Citizens who attend "get to walk a mile in the cops and firefighters shoes" and realize that they are hard working people who do an extraordinarily difficult job with little to no community support until you need them. I challenge anyone who "thinks" they know what cops and firefighters do to sign up and get educated. or if you think there are "qualified people" lined up to do these jobs for little money and crappy health care (as some propose the unions cut to).
Craig Lounsbury
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 5:37 p.m.
since you brought up health care, what do you think is a fair copay for a public employee to pay for a good" family health care plan?
BornNRaised
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 12:57 p.m.
The city is laying off police and firefighters, but is training citizens how to shoot people? Hmmm.... sure, that makes sense. Only in Ann Arbor.
DFSmith
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 3:29 p.m.
Looks like you didnt understand the point Rich was trying to make.
cinnabar7071
Thu, Feb 17, 2011 : 2:37 p.m.
Police and firefighters are people too. Do you think once they've been hired to the police or fire department some how they become super human?