Links

The numbers are daunting. According to a PERF survey of departments across the country, 65% saw an increase in retirements and 66% saw an increase in resignations between 2020 and 2022. Applications for full-time officer jobs plunged 69% over that same period, while overall staffing levels dropped nearly 5%…

Full story: Why is there a police officer shortage, and what are the solutions?

It can take between six months and a year for a prospective municipal police officer to complete requirements of the civil service hiring process.

In Greensburg, candidates now will be able to get a jump on that process by applying for a possible spot on the force before they’ve completed police academy training.

“Hopefully, that increases the number of applicants,” Greensburg police Chief Charles Irvin said.

Greensburg Council this week agreed to change the city’s civil service rules to allow that early entry into the police candidate screening process. Applicants still must have successfully completed academy training when they are hired.

The newly modified rule “allows for current cadets in the academy to at least apply and start the process,” Irvin said. “It’s a long process.

“There’s a written test, there’s a physical agility test, there’s an oral examination, a background investigation and psychological and medical (assessments). By the time you get all those applicants through that process, it can take anywhere from six months to a year.”

Full story: Greensburg changes civil service hiring rule, hopes for increased pool of police candidates

Minnesota students can’t be held in a prone position or subjected to “comprehensive restraint on the head, neck and across most of the torso” under a new state law — and law enforcement officials are questioning whether it will prevent them from doing their job.

Jeff Potts, executive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association, sent a letter to Gov. Tim Walz and other state leaders this week outlining concerns that banning the maneuvers rob school resources officers (SROs) of tools to break up fights in school hallways.

“Prohibiting the most basic measure of safely restraining and controlling the aggressor in a fight severely impacts the SRO’s ability to intervene, stop the altercation, and protect everyone’s safety,” Potts wrote…

Full story: Minnesota banned some physical holds on students. Now school resource officers have questions.

For some, the clear backpacks are just another prop in school security theater — an answer that does little more than put adults at ease. Critics say it has come to symbolize the lengths decision-makers will go to avoid passing meaningful gun control, a knee-jerk answer to the call to “do something” after a tragedy. Supporters of these measures say that they could deter students from bringing weapons to school, even if they don’t stop them altogether.

Full story: More schools require clear backpacks amid fears of guns at schools – The Washington Post

The city unveiled two new public dashboards this week, showing first responder data and info about disciplinary probes in the Denver Sheriff Department…

Full story: Denver Department of Public Safety Unveils Public Information Dashboards | Westword

Medical kit in hand, Officer Pierce made a tourniquet, applying pressure on the wound. His quick work stopped the bleeding as he led the victim downstairs to safety.

That was the first of three life-saving responses that weekend, including coming to the aid of a woman who was shot twice.

Instinct from his time as an EMT in Virginia Beach helped guide him that weekend.

Officer Pierce tells News 3 anchor Blaine Stewart that job, and his years of service in the U.S. Army, are what brought him to be a Portsmouth police officer seven years ago.

“To be honest with you. my whole life, I’ve always thought about law enforcement,” Officer Pierce explains. “I love serving my community. I love serving and helping others.”

Full story: Portsmouth police officer honored for helping to save 3 lives in one weekend

Traffic managers said A.I. will eventually be able to use the network of traffic cameras and sensors to predict if a vehicle is about to run a red light — and then hold the light green, in order to prevent a collision.

“The more you advance this technology, it’s going to reduce serious kinds of accidents,” Donaldson said.

It is something they believe could potentially save time, money and lives…

Full story: AI playing increasing role in managing traffic on nation’s roads

St. Petersburg College on Monday announced a new program to train local law enforcement officers how to better respond to colleagues and members of the public with mental health challenges.

The three-semester curriculum includes six courses in counseling and interviewing skills, as well as substance abuse and family interactions. Said to be the first of its kind in the state, the program came about after the Sun Coast Police Benevolent Association approached the college.

The union has seen a growing need for mental health intervention in recent years, Sasha Lohn, the organization’s general counsel and executive director, said during an announcement at the college’s Midtown campus…

Full story: St. Petersburg College launches mental health courses for law enforcement

Gov. Jim Pillen has rejected a proposed relaxation in drug-use standards to qualify for training as a Nebraska law enforcement officer, saying it could be viewed as a “watering down” of the standards.

A panel of state law enforcement officials had recommended the change as part of a broader effort to qualify more applicants for the necessary state training to work in law enforcement.

Currently, a recruit cannot have used marijuana for 24 months, or used a narcotic or other “dangerous drug” for five years. prior to being admitted to the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center in Grand Island.

The Police Standards Advisory Council had proposed to lower the standards to 12 months for marijuana and three years for narcotics.

Full story: Governor nixes proposal to relax police trainee standards for marijuana, drug use | Nebraska Examiner