Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Police Executive Research Forum's Review of APD Shootings
Police Executive Research Forum's Review of APD Shootings
Introduction
The city of Albuquerque asked the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to conduct an
examination of the conditions that may be associated with what seems to be a high rate of
policesuspect encounters that involve the use of force by Albuquerque police officers. Specifically,
PERF was asked to examine five key areas regarding use of force by the APD as well as assaults
against police officers:
1. What contributes to assaults on Albuquerque police officers?
2. Is there a correlation between Albuquerques violent crime rate and the number of assaults on
police officers?
3. Are socio-economic conditions a factor in use-of-force encounters?
4. Many of the offenders involved in use-of-force encounters have criminal records. What
factors arising from a suspects interaction with the criminal justice system may affect the
rate of use of force?
5. An analysis of the use of force by Albuquerque police officers. This includes a review of the
departments training, use-of-force policies and directives, use-of-force review and
investigation processes, and the departments Early Intervention System.
The PERF team conducted a site visit and interviewed city officials, members of the department at
all levels, partner agencies and service providers, and other individuals who contributed insight and
information necessary to complete this project. Interviews focused on processes and procedures in
place to capture, track and report use of force events, the investigation and review processes for use
of force incidents, police use of force generally, officer-involved shooting events, and citizen
complaints.
The department provided information and electronic data regarding officer-involved shootings,
useof-force incidents, training materials, policies and written directives, annual reports,
organizational components, workload data, and much more.
This report is the result of these interviews and data, research on use of force by police,
consultation with recognized subject matter experts, and the expertise of the PERF team amassed
over 25 years of working with police departments in a variety of areas, including use-of-force
policy and training.
Analysis conducted for this study shows that, although officer-involved shootings recently have
increased, both violent crime and assaults on officers have been on a downward trend, as they have
in other comparable cities. Violence has declined in recent years in Albuquerque, as it has in other
comparable cities. In the recent past, Albuquerque has had higher rates of assaults against police
than have most comparable cities. However, the rate of assaults against police in the city has
declined over the last few years. The city experienced a particularly notable decline in assaults on
police in 2008. As of that year, the citys rate of assaults on police was similar to that of
comparable cities. This downward trend continued through 2010.
The City of Albuquerque and the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) have in place a wide array
of mechanisms designed to manage officers use of force and to monitor and investigate officerinvolved shootings. The department has reassessed its training and has adopted a greater focus on
tactics to resolve conflicts without force whenever possible. The department has procured lesslethal weaponry and is taking steps to build officer confidence in the use of these tools. An internal
affairs database was set up to capture use-of-force data, but there are data gaps and corrections still
need to be made. A non-disciplinary Early Intervention System was put into place to detect
patterns by officers who have been involved in any combination of five designated incidents in a
12-month period which may suggest that the officer could be at risk. If the departments commandlevel review of an identified officers actions finds no problem or pattern of activity giving rise to
concern, no further action may be necessary at that time. However, identified concerns can result in
corrective and progressive measures including non-disciplinary counseling, psychological review
and transfer. APDs acquisition of technology includes equipping every officer with personal video
recording equipment.
The department has created a citizen complaint process that is easily accessible to the public, but it
may be intimidating or discouraging to some as it requires complainants to sign their complaints.
There are extensive multi-level investigation and review processes regarding force incidents, as
well as managerial monitoring to improve policies, training and equipment, but the recent spate of
officer-involved shooting events has not diminished.
PERF offers 40 recommendations as a result of this analysis. No single recommendation is likely
to have a dramatic impact. However, if they are all implemented, the cumulative effect may be to
reduce the prevalence of officer-involved shootings.
Overview
The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) has taken many positive steps in response to the spate
of officer-involved shootings it has experienced in recent years. Officers are trained at the entry
level and are regularly retrained in tactics to de-escalate volatile incidents and in measures to
control persons, when possible, before the use of greater force is necessary. At the time of the
PERF visit, training staff were assessing training strategies with a goal of including greater roleplay
exercises that call on officers to consider a wide range of options to calm situations, rather than to
permitting them to escalate.
Responding effectively and employing appropriate intervention efforts to deal with mentally ill or
emotionally disturbed persons is a long-standing problem for police, everywhere. As established
later in this report, more than half of the subjects whose actions led APD officers to use deadly
force were noted to have a history of mental illness. National data indicate that 65% of
officerinvolved shootings involve mentally ill persons. Recognizing the need to manage these
challenges, the department established a Crisis Intervention Team (CIT), consisting of
approximately 125 field personnel throughout geographical and shift assignments, who are
provided 40 hours of training in how to better deal with persons exhibiting mental illnesses or those
who are in mental distress. (The department actually has trained a greater number, but some have
been transferred, leaving just 125 in patrol.) This CIT initiative helps to ensure the likelihood of a
trained officer being primarily dispatched, or available to respond to, any call in which a mentally
distressed individual is posing a risk to himself, the public, or officers.
The department also guides officers in handling mentally ill persons with an in-depth policy (#213) that provides detailed information about identifying abnormal behaviors, determining risks,
methods of approach, emergency evaluations, referrals, deploying CIT, and other resources.
Additionally, a six-member volunteer Crisis Outreach and Support Team of civilian personnel has
been formed to provide follow-up help, and a member of the departments Behavioral Sciences
Team is dispatched to all barricade situations. Each of these initiatives represents an exemplary
effort by the department to ensure that persons suffering from mental illness or emotional
disturbances are handled in the most appropriate manner.
The Crisis Intervention Team and Crisis Outreach and Support Team have been invaluable in
reaching out to persons with mental problems. Statistics reviewed by PERF confirm that on a
monthly basis, many hundreds of persons are assisted through direct contact, referral to other
services, interventions, threat assessments, and coordination with state agencies and service
providers.
APD has issued equipment and trained its officers in less lethal alternatives to the use of deadly
force. TASERs have been issued to the departments field officers, and the department is in the
midst of upgrading some older models. Although officers employed TASERs in only four of the 37
officer-involved shooting incidents (11% of the time) from 2006-2010, a review of non-shooting
use-of-force reports found that when officers used weapons at all, TASERs were used 48% of the
time. Officers are also provided the opportunity to carry bean bag shotguns, for which the
department has installed trunk mounts in take-home patrol vehicles. The availability and the use of
these less lethal weapons, when circumstances permit, can obviate the employment of deadly force
in some instances, thereby potentially saving lives.
Every shooting incident is responded to by the Chief of Police and/or the Public Safety Director.
This is critically important, as it demonstrates to the public and officers alike that the city and the
department recognize the gravity of every instance in which an officer employs deadly force.
Every APD officer-involved shooting is reviewed from several perspectives. Upon confirmation of
a police shooting incident, a Multi-Jurisdictional Investigative Team1 is assembled to conduct a full
investigation. Each such incident is also fully investigated by the departments Homicide Unit,
regardless of whether a subject was injured or killed; and the Internal Affairs Division initiates an
investigation into the officer(s) use of force. Moreover, every officer-involved shooting
investigation is directed to the Grand Jury for review. Completed investigations, after Grand Jury
review, are directed to the Citys Independent Review Officer, where a determination is made as to
whether the shootings were justified before they are submitted to the officers chain of command
for any departmental action that may be appropriate. The only exceptions to a full deployment of
resources in response to an in-custody death or officer-involved shooting are situations in which
there was an accidental discharge without injury or in which the officers gunfire was necessary to
destroy an animal. This multi-faceted approach to addressing officer-involved shooting incidents is
comprehensive and represents a best professional practice.
All officer-involved shooting incidents are further reviewed by a Critical Incident Review Board to
determine whether there is any issue with existing departmental policy, training or equipment that
should be addressed in order to prevent another such incident. If at this level of review there is a
finding of deficiency, the boards report to the chief results in corrective action being undertaken.
Officers who are the subject of an officer-involved shooting are not returned to their assignment for
three days and must first be cleared by the departments contract psychologist to return. Thus, they
are returned before the investigations described above are completed and before the Grand July
determines if they will be indicted. This is not an ideal practice, inasmuch as the department could
be returning an officer to full duty before it is determined whether he or she will be terminated or
prosecuted for actions taken in a shooting event.
1 This team includes officers from the APD, the NM State Police, the Bernalillo County Sheriffs
Office, the University of NM Police Dept., the Albuquerque Public Schools Police Dept., and a
representative from the City Attorneys Office.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
Although APD has not engaged in the widespread use of dash-cameras in patrol vehicles,2 for some
time officers have been equipped with audio recorders affixed to their gun belts. During the time
PERF worked on this review, the department acquired personal video equipment that each patrol
officer wears on his or her shirt. This is an invaluable piece of equipment in documenting
interactions between officers and the persons they meet. In confrontational situations, the factual
confirmation of events captured by these cameras is a huge step forward and provides the
departments supervisors and managers (as well as prosecutors and courts) undeniable evidence of
how an incident evolved and the actual depiction of the visual viewpoint of the officer.
The process for citizens to lodge a complaint against an officer is uncomplicated and easy to
access. All complaints, including those involving police use of force, can be made online or in
person. Complaint forms are available in English and Spanish at police facilities, at Internal Affairs
at City Hall, at the Mayors Office, and on the APD website, as well as on the Citys website (the
Independent Review Office of the Police Oversight Commission).
In accordance with the current labor contract, the department is permitted to accept only signed
complaint forms, but online complaints can be accepted with the understanding that a signature will
be provided at a later time or by fax. This impedes the acceptance and investigation of anonymous
complaints against officers. However, serious anonymous allegations of officer misconduct or
criminal allegations can be initiated. Complaints may be investigated by the Independent Review
Officers investigators or by the police departments Internal Affairs Division, as determined by the
auditor. Completed investigations go before the Police Oversight Committee and then to the Citys
Chief Administrative Officer for action, when appropriate.
The way in which police departments report use-of-force incidents varies. Some agencies report a
use of force when any restraining action is taken, others only when complaints are made, and others
at varying points in-between. The APD has for many years utilized a Use of Force Report that is
2 Vehicles used for DUI enforcement and selected other special assignments may have dash-cams
installed.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
completed by the involved officers sergeant, but the sergeant must first be trained in use of the
form.
The APD reports a use of force when an officer employs:
Empty-handed takedown
Chemical Agent
Canine
Bean Bag
TASER
Impact Weapon, or
Firearm.
Each of these use-of-force events is entered into the departments Early Intervention System, the
Multi-Relational Internal Affairs Database (MRIAD).
If supervisory review raises concerns about unreasonable force, the use-of-force form is directed to
the officers commander for additional review. This review can trigger an Internal Affairs
investigation to determine whether a breach of policy has taken place. If the circumstances raise
questions about criminal misconduct, the Chief of Police can assign the matter to be thoroughly
investigated, usually by the Violent Crimes Unit. In the instance of officer-involved shooting
incidents, the Internal Affairs investigation is not typically undertaken concurrently, but rather after
the criminal investigation and Grand Jury review are completed.
The APDs MRIAD Early Intervention System is focused not on discipline, but rather on alerting
police managers to officers who may be at risk and could benefit from intervention (ranging from a
discussion with a commander to a formal referral to employee assistance resources) before the
identified pattern or concern evolves into a larger problem involving discipline, or one that brings
about harm to the officer or others. The MRIAD system tracks internal and citizen complaints
against officers, use-of-force incidents, firearm discharges, certain police vehicle accidents, and
traffic infractions. When five captured events involving one officer over a running twelve months
are identified by the system, it selects that officer for the next monthly notification report and the
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
officers situation is reviewed by his or her commander. The commander may initiate a meeting to
review the matter with the officer, provide counseling, or direct the officer to employee assistance
or peer support. Referrals are not formally tracked and reportedly are not a frequent occurrence.
The MRIAD is capable of providing reports regarding involved officers, subjects, weapon or tactics
use, case closures, policy violations, and other factors that are useful in identifying training or
policy shortfalls. Reports of this nature are useful to the department in directing reviews of policy,
training, and operations.
The steps taken by the Albuquerque Police Department represent many of the approaches taken by
progressive law enforcement agencies throughout the United States to monitor and minimize the
use of force by officers. Despite some impressive steps forward, there is still work to do. The
department has reassessed its training and has adopted a greater focus on tactics to resolve conflicts
without force. The department has procured less lethal weaponry and is taking steps to build officer
confidence in their use. An internal affairs database and Early Intervention System were set up to
capture use-of-force data, but there are gaps in the data, and corrections still need to be made. The
acquisition of technology includes equipping every officer with personal video recording
equipment. The departments citizen complaint process is accessible but may be intimidating or
discouraging to some as it requires complainants to sign their complaints. There are extensive
multi-level investigation and review processes regarding force incidents, as well as managerial
monitoring to improve policies, training and equipment. But the recent spate of officer-involved
shooting events continues.
data about the use of any force by police is inconsistently reported from one department to the next,
and data regarding wrongful use of force by police is relatively unknown.
What has come to light in various studies and through surveys administered by the National
Institute of Justice, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, and other researchers is that generally, fewer
than 2% of all interactions between police officers and the public involve the use of force, and 80%
of force complaints come from police-initiated contact as opposed to calls for service response.
Even in arrest situations, fewer than 20% require any use of force; and when force is necessary,
weaponless tactics suffice 80% of the time. Approximately half of the weaponless force that
officers employ consists of nothing more than grabbing. The use of any weapon is limited to 2%
of arrests. When suspects are injured, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 48% of the
injuries are bruises, 24% are lacerations, and 4% are the result of gunshots.
One five-year study conducted by the Anne Arundel County, MD Police Department in 2009 found
that Emergency Evaluation calls (regarding mentally distressed persons) led to the largest number
of their use-of-force incidents, followed (in order) by incidences of disorderly conduct, assaults on
officers, and assaults on others. The Seattle WA Police Department reported in the same year that
its use-of-force incidents arose most often from assault situations. Moreover, Seattle reported that
73% of use-of-force incidents involved impaired subjects, but the impairment was most often drugs
and alcohol; mental impairments were the least frequent at 12%.
All of this suggests that the makeup and problems of communities, and how they impact police
response and actions, can vary greatly. In Albuquerque, even while assaults on officers are in
decline, assaultive subjects are a significant cause of police use of force. Data produced by the APD
for officer-involved shooting incidents (2004-2011) show that these events were precipitated most
often by a call for service and that 50% of subjects were impaired either by mental illness, alcohol
or drugs.
Officer-Involved Shooting Incidents Summary:
From 2006 2010, 47 APD officers were involved in 37 officer-involved shooting incidents that
resulted in 18 deaths. In the first half of 2011, another four officer-involved shootings took place.
Reinvestigating officer-involved shooting cases was outside of the scope of this study as specified
by the city. However, PERF was charged with identifying any common factors shared among the
incidents, the subjects of the shootings, and the officers who employed deadly force.
10% of incidents involved both a call for service and a traffic stop;
5 % of incidents were not related to either a call for service or a traffic stop.
Officer-involved shooting incidents during the period examined were spread across Albuquerque
with three-fourths taking place in the citys northern areas:
It is interesting to note that while 76% of officer involved-shooting incidents took place in the
Northern quadrants of the city, other use-of-force incidents were more evenly distributed across the
city, with the largest number located in the Southeast area.
10
The issue of the distance between officers and the subjects in shooting incidents in Albuquerque
raises questions. According to the FBI, over 50% of officer-involved shootings nationally take
place at a distance below 5 feet, and 95% below 21 feet. The 21-foot distance is considered the
minimum safe distance to be maintained when confronted by a person with an edged instrument.
Only 13% of the APDs officer involved shootings form 2008-2010 took place at a distance of less
than 5 feet, while 30% were over 30 feet. PERF was unable to identify an explanation for this
difference.
11
that violent crime is on the decline in Albuquerque, as are assaults on officers and the use of force
against officers.
Nevertheless, this underlying anxiety about assaults against the police may put officers on guard as
they answer calls and effect traffic stops. Many APD officers and officials interviewed voiced
concern that the number of mentally ill or emotionally disturbed persons in Albuquerque also
seems to have increased, and there was some lesser concern voiced about the presence of gang
members in the city.
Over recent decades, police departments have developed community policing and problem-solving
initiatives directed at quality of life issues, and this has increased their daily interaction with
mentally ill and emotionally disturbed persons. Some studies estimate that as many as 20 to 25% of
single adult homeless persons suffer from mental illness. Studies indicate that when mental illness
is accompanied by alcohol and/or drug use, the potential for violence increases.
89% of subjects had a criminal record, 81% had a record of violent crimes;
36 of the 37 subjects are reported to have had documented contact with the APD, ranging
from a low of 1 contact to a high of 95, with an average of 14 contacts per subject.
3 While the influence of drugs was reported to have been a known factor in 11% of officer involved
shootings, and alcohol in 16%, in the majority of instances the influence of drugs and alcohol was
reported to be unknown.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
12
22% of the incidents that led to officer-involved shootings were reported to be linked to
domestic incidents.4
Subject Demographics:
The race of subjects 57% were Hispanic, 27% were White, 3% were African-American,
3% were Native American, 3% were Asian, and the race of 8% was not known.
The age of subjects 16% were 18-20 years, 32% were 21-30 years, 19% were 31-40, 27%
were 41-50 years, and 5% were over 50 years.
51% of subjects were of smaller stature (510 or under and under 180 lbs.)
49% of subjects were of larger stature (over 510 and/or 180 lbs. or more)
In 81% of incidents, more than one officer was present at the time of the firearm discharge.
In 89% of incidents, the officer employed no less-lethal option before resorting to deadly
force.
In 11% of incidents, officers employed the TASER before resorting to deadly force.
Officer Demographics:
The age range of the 47 officers who used deadly force was 22 to 55 years, with an average
age of 33 at the time of the shooting in which they were involved. 40% were 21-29 years of
age, 49% were 30-39 years of age, 6% were 40-49 years of age and 2% were over 50 years
4 22% of officer-involved shooting incidents were determined to have stemmed from domestic
incidents, as determined after the event. The departments own study reports that 14% of officer
involved shooting incidents stemmed from domestic incident related dispatched calls.
5 In total, 47 officers fired weapons during these incidents.
13
of age. One officer who was involved in a 2006 incident is now retired and his personal
information was not available.
The average age of officers who were involved in other use-of-force incidents is 32 years.
Tenure in the department for these 47 officers ranged from 1 year to 28 years, with an
average of six years in the department at the time of their involvement. 26 officers (53%)
had 1-5 years in the department, 11 officers (23%) had 5-10 years, 8 officers (17%) had
1115 years, and 2 officers (4%) had over 15 years on the job.
Department-wide, the average time on the job for all officers is 11 years.
Two officers have each been involved in two shooting incidents. (No officer was involved in more
than two incidents.) In both of these instances, more than one officer fired a weapon. One of these
officers was the primary firing officer in one incident and the second firing officer in another
incident eight days later. The other of the two officers was not a primary shooting officer in any
incident, but a second- and third-shooting officer in two incidents just over four months apart.
None of the officers involved in these shooting incidents was found to have violated the
departments Use of Force Policy and none was indicted by the Grand Jury.
To evaluate whether there was any training issue regarding a specific academy session producing
an unusual number of officers who were involved in shooting incidents, PERF examined the year
of hire for the 47 officers.
1978
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
# of
Officers
This table shows that the distribution of involved officers spans thirty years. Closer examination of
actual hiring dates of officers finds that the largest number of officers who were in the same
academy recruit class is five who attended the same academy session in 2007. However, it is
14
important to understand that the majority of patrol officers those who answer calls and make
traffic stops and are most likely to confront violent subjects are largely the same officers who
would have attended recruit training in the last decade.
15
force complaints with a sustained finding. In Albuquerque, each unnecessary use-of-force case is
thoroughly investigated and is independently reviewed several times and at various levels. Closure
types are determined and approved according to the unique facts of each case. Drawing
comparisons between the rate or percentage of closure types found in other departments is
imprecise at best.
Calms emotional/angry people and defuses conflicts through mediation, negotiation, and
persuasion rather than force (when appropriate)
16
Recognizes the impact of ones own verbal and nonverbal communications on others (and
makes sure both are consistent and appropriate).
California POST intends that police agencies should evaluate applicants for these positive
behaviors and social competence in psychological screenings as well as oral interviews.
The COPS Office project similarly identified behaviors and characteristics that define a
serviceorientation but can also lead to effective conflict resolution, including:
Many progressive police and sheriffs departments have updated their job task analyses for the
position of police officer and do, in fact, seek to identify applicants who possess the behaviors and
characteristics that are associated with community policing, problem-solving (inherently including
use of discretion), and upholding community values.
Expanded efforts to identify and select recruits who have a demonstrated history of making good
decisions include seeking out attributes such as:
Volunteers
Engages in problem-solving
17
After implementing a selection process that seeks out these attributes among new hires, the
Longmont CO Police Department reports that it reduced use-of-force incidents by 45% over five
years.
Recruitment Selection in the Albuquerque Police Department:
The recruitment effort in the Albuquerque Police Department, like in many other law enforcement
agencies, has been primarily focused on recruiter outreach at colleges and universities, job fairs,
sporting events, ethnic-specific events held in the area, and interest generated from the
departments website. In addition to looking for police officer applicants, the department has
sought to hire for public service aide positions. This takes them into area high schools, seeking
young persons to hire and mentor with the hope that they would eventually advance into sworn
positions. However, current budgetary constraints have eliminated the departments recruitment
budget.
The selection process begins with having applicants complete interest cards. Recruitment personnel
contact the interested persons and go over the minimum qualifications for the position of police
officer. Those who meet the qualifications are encouraged to submit a city application and are
scheduled for a written examination. The multiple-choice exam measures the applicants reading
comprehension, math, mapping, recall, and observation. Those who score a minimum of 70% move
on to an age- and gender-normed physical agility test. Those who fail are provided study materials
to prepare them for a re-test.
Applicants may take a physical agility pre-test to learn where they may need to prepare themselves.
They may receive help at the academy in this area. Applicants may make two attempts to pass the
physical agility test. If they fail twice, they are disqualified from further attempts for a period of
six months.
18
Applicants who are successful to this point are scheduled for a psychological exam which entails
taking a 720-question Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) exam and an
interview with the departments contract psychologist. The psychological exam is a pass/fail
instrument aimed at identifying those who are suitable for the position of police officer, and those
who are not suitable.
The next component of the selection process, the background check, may be undertaken while the
previous steps are being administered. Applicants must first complete and submit a comprehensive
personal history statement that requires the applicant to provide information about former
residences, employment, military experience, education, arrest/citation history, and credit history.
The statement includes a urinalysis test waiver.
Applicants not yet disqualified are given a conditional offer of employment and are scheduled for a
polygraph examination that must be preceded by the completion of a thorough personal integrity
questionnaire that addresses drug use, criminal events, and other matters of individual integrity.
Among the areas covered are specific questions as to whether the applicant ever committed or
engaged in: aggravated assault, domestic abuse/assault, kidnapping/false imprisonment,
harassment, carrying of weapons, weapons violations, sex crime, abuse of a mentally/physically
disabled person or child, a physical fight in the last three years, an animal control/abuse violation,
prejudice against any group, membership in a gang or radical group, physical abuse or threat
because of sexual orientation, or cultural differences. The answers to these questions help the
department to develop a profile of each applicant regarding his or her history of making good
decisions, any propensity toward violence as a solution, tolerance and ability to accept the views of
others, etc. The answers assist the polygraphist in preparing for the polygraph examination.
Applicants who pass the polygraph undergo a physical exam conducted by a contract physician
who abides by medical standards prepared and regularly revised for the position of police officer.
Applicants who are disqualified because of their failure to meet psychological or medical standards
may appeal to the state Department of Public Safety.
19
The final step of the selection process is the Chiefs Oral Board. Prior to each interview, applicant
investigators brief the board about the applicant. Boards question each applicant and make hiring
recommendations to the chief of police. In keeping with the departments desire to help good
applicants be successful, there is a mentorship opportunity for applicants until their academy
session begins. Instructors make themselves available to applicants, offering them guidance in how
to maximize the academy experience.
20
The Use of Force Policy also discusses other use of force by police; the responsibilities of officers,
supervisors, and commanders; and the way the department responds to reports of use of force. The
policy is extensive and thorough, but often difficult to follow.
Recommendations:
1. Index the Use of Force Policy. The APDs Use of Force Policy should include, at its
beginning, an index. The existing policy is thorough and incorporates all the elements
found in other comprehensive use-of-force polices in progressive police departments. The
policy addresses officer use of deadly force, less-lethal force, other use of force, reporting
the use of force (including supervisory responsibilities), the departments response to use of
less-lethal munitions, electric control weapons, authorized personnel, shotgun and other
training, and advanced training. These are all critical topics demanding a logical flow.
Because different use-of-force situations are associated with various responsibilities, the
policy should address each type of force and the related reporting requirements and
necessary actions. An index would make it much easier to follow.
2. Officers Should Not Fire at or from Vehicles. The departments Use of Force Policy
should prohibit officers from firing from or at a moving vehicle under all circumstances,
except to save the officer or another person from death or grievous bodily injury, and when
that threat is other than the vehicle itself. The current policy includes this general
prohibition, but it allows another exception. The policy permits officers to fire at the tires of
a vehicle in which there is a pursued dangerous felon otherwise meeting the criteria for the
use of deadly force. This does not consider the associated risks. While there may always be
risks when police attempt to force a vehicle to stop, some tactics are more controlled. For
example, the proper deployment of stop sticks deflates all tires and causes a quick reduction
in vehicle speed. However, when only one tire is shot out and rapidly deflated, erratic and
dangerous vehicle movements can result. Additionally, even skilled marksmen cannot be
expected to control shots from or at moving vehicles. Unexpected road conditions or abrupt
21
evasive action can result in poorly placed shots that could endanger innocent persons in the
pursued vehicle as well as other motorists or pedestrians.
3. Field Supervisor and Dispatcher Training Should Stress Prompt Response. The
department should stress in its training for patrol and other operational supervisors as well
as for dispatchers the importance of prompt arrival of a supervisor at critical situations.
When an officer first arrives at a critical incident scene, he or she is often immersed in an
emotionally-charged situation with a multitude of tasks. The event can escalate quickly and
completely consume the initial responding officer(s). Arrival of the field supervisor can be a
much-needed stabilizing event. An experienced supervisor can have a calming effect and
can help to slow things down. Dispatchers should be trained and directed by protocol that
for all calls in which there is reference to an armed or dangerous person, a field supervisor
is dispatched and acknowledged when on the scenein command.
4. Investigative Teams Should Brief the Chief. The Multi-Jurisdictional Investigative Team
members from outside agencies should be present at the Chiefs Briefing and at the Critical
Incident Review. The practice of detectives from the surrounding law enforcement agencies
being involved in a major investigation from the beginning is an excellent practice. It
would be even more beneficial if the team detectives attended briefings to provide valuable
insight and an outside perspective as to issues with policy, procedures, and training all that
could help prevent future incidents.
5. Investigative Team Briefings to Guide Chief in Returning Officers to Work. Officers
who are the subject of a shooting investigation should not be returned to full duty solely at
the discretion of the departments psychologist. The current practice of returning officers to
duty after a shooting as long as the departments psychologist agrees offers an appropriate
level of protection to the officer, but it does not protect the department or the public.
Although it would be a rare event, if an officer should become involved in a second
shooting and then be indicted for criminal wrongdoing in the first, the department could be
22
subject to significant liability. More importantly, the community would have been put at
risk. Waiting to restore an officer to full duty until it has been determined by the Grand Jury
that no indictment will be forthcoming could take months. However, the principal
investigating teams (Multi-Jurisdictional, Internal Affairs, Homicide) could be directed to
provide a 72-Hour Preliminary Findings Briefing for the chief. This would better position
the chief to decide if the officer should be restored to duty. This should pertain to accidental
and animal destruction shootings as well. In these circumstances the briefing may take place
well before 72 hours if completed.
6. Conduct Concurrent Criminal and Administrative Investigations. The department
should undertake the practice of conducting concurrent criminal and administrative
investigations of its members. Clearly, as required by Garrity v. New Jersey, 385 U.S. 493
(1967), the department must establish a one-way firewall that prevents statements or
evidence gathered in the administrative investigation from being released to the criminal
investigation. But by conducting concurrent investigations, the department may be able to
reach an administrative conclusion and take appropriate action without having to wait
months or even years for criminal trial and appeals.
7. Submit Use of Force Forms by End of Shift. Preliminary use-of-force reports as required
of the involved officer(s) and supervisors should be submitted by the end of the shift or
before they are relieved. Understandably, preliminary reports cannot always be in-depth and
detailed and may in some instances be delayed by unavailability of details, officers rights,
etc. But a report that is as complete as possible should be submitted by shifts end for
review and forwarding to managers, as circumstances dictate.
8. Better Checking and Reporting Use of Force. The department should generally improve
methods for reporting and checking use-of-force data. As PERF conducted its review of
annual Use of Less Lethal Force Reports compiled by the department, tabulation and
percentage errors were noted in several reports. Moreover, MRIAD data on the use of force,
23
by type, requested by PERF differed from figures that were included in other annual reports.
Within the MRIAD data, some fields reflected considerable missing data. PERF was not
able to determine if the database did not pull all the requested data together or if the fields
were left blank by reporting field personnel.
9. Focus on Those Involved in Multiple Use-of-Force Incidents: As described in the
Analysis of Force research section of this report, 22% of the departments officers account
for 60% of the use-of-force reports. The department should examine the specific
circumstances, training, assignment, and background of these officers. While much of what
the department does is effective, there may be lessons that can be learned from a more
comprehensive review of the specific factors of cases and officers. These lessons may be
instrumental in making changes to tactics, training or policy.
10. Track Officer-Involved Shootings in MRIAD. The department should better track and
report discharge of firearms incidents. Officer-involved shooting incidents are not currently
captured in the departments MRIAD database. These incidents are handled and tracked
separately. They should be entered into MRIAD, tracked and reported along with all other
use-of-force incidents. Additionally, departmental reports reviewed by PERF depict a
category of indistinguishable firearms discharges that encompass Line-of-Duty
Discharges, Accidental and Animal (destruction). These are dissimilar actions and should
be identified and counted separately. The departments reference to officer-involved
shootings includes only those that result in injury or death (when the subject was struck by
the officers round). Those instances in which the officer fired at someone and missed are
not included. The department fully investigates these incidents, but they are not counted or
considered when discussing officer-involved shootings. Unless it was an accidental or
unauthorized discharge such as a warning shot, it must be assumed that the officers intent
was to strike the subject. In this regard, intent, not marksmanship, should be the primary
consideration; and the events should be counted and reported along with officer-involved
shootings.
24
11. Produce Critical Incident Review Findings. The Critical Incident Review should be more
formal and should produce written findings. If during the review it is determined that
policy, training, or equipment needs to be modified, follow-up information should also be
included as to what action was taken. Creating documents that show that the department is
reviewing its shooting incidents and taking steps to prevent future incidents can
demonstrate the departments efforts to the public.
12. Document Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Response and Outcomes. The department
should better document the use of CIT officers and the outcome of their efforts. PERF was
highly impressed with the reported workload of the departments CIT officers. The
workload demonstrates a significant effort aimed at providing assistance to troubled persons
through resource referrals, intervention activities, and more. However, there was no tracking
of how often CIT officers were dispatched as primary or supplemental responding officers
to these calls, or the outcome of calls to which they responded that involved mentally ill or
emotionally disturbed persons. This is an essential purpose of these officers. The
department should be able to document how often and how effectively these officers are
used in this capacity. Workload statistics indicate that they are busy, but it does not
document their effectiveness in controlling and deescalating volatile situations.
Tracking of the number of CIT dispatches and repeat CIT calls for service at one location
would help CIT supervisors determine whether interventions or referrals were successful or
failed, and would establish a premise history. Calls that were not dispatched as a CIT call
but involved a mentally ill person should be cleared with a designation that identifies the
call as such.
13. CIT Officers Should Meet and Debrief. CIT officers should be periodically brought
together as a group to discuss and share successful approaches and tactics that could be
incorporated into future training for CIT and patrol officers. When the police are called to
25
assist with a mentally ill person, it may be an opportunity for the department to get help to a
person who may not even know he needs it. If the police provide nothing more than another
trip to jail or another revolving door, the person and his family may react negatively toward
police in the future. One measure of success is to determine from mental health providers
the outcome of referrals (rates of success of engaging people referred by the police).
Successful outcomes should be replicated.
14. CIT Oversight Should Be at a Higher Level. Oversight of the CIT function should be a
collateral responsibility of a designated command level officer. Each area command has a
designated CIT coordinator at the sergeant level, and a CIT sergeant and two detectives are
assigned to the Violent Crimes. Documentation provided by the department shows that
these personnel maintain a significant monthly workload. However, the importance of this
initiative justifies command-level (commander or above) leadership to ensure coordination,
training, allocation of resources. This official assuming command for CIT should develop
him/herself as the departments subject matter expert on the topic of Crisis Intervention and
represent the department as such. This subject matter expert concept is used in Miami,
FL, for example, where each member of the command staff has been given responsibility
for one collateral area of expertise, such as Crowd Control, Deadly Force, Crisis
Intervention, etc. It is then incumbent on the individual to become the departments expert
on the assigned topic and to serve as the departments lead advisor to the chief in related
matters. This also demonstrates the level of the departments commitment to service as it
relates to mental health problems and working with mental health partners.
15. Dispatch CIT to High Risk-Calls. The department should dispatch a CIT response to all
known high-risk calls. Initial response that includes CIT officers on calls with a greater
likelihood for violence, and perhaps a disturbed person, could result in de-escalated
outcomes. Dispatch should specifically notify supervisors of high-risk calls. Their early
presence on such calls can positively impact the outcome.
26
16. Accept All Citizen Complaints, Even When Anonymous. The department should seek to
modify future labor contracts to allow accepting citizen complaints against officers,
regardless of whether they are signed. The requirement that only signed complaints will be
accepted limits the handling of legitimate complaints against officers by persons who may
be too fearful to sign a complaint. A legitimate complaint must be investigated with or
without a signature or even a complainants name. Not every anonymous complaint can be
investigated. Some have insufficient detail or merit to justify an investigation, but when an
anonymous complaint with reasonable merit is presented, the department must take
appropriate action.
17. Change name of Early Warning System to Early Intervention System. The
department should change the name of its Early Warning System to Early Intervention
System (EIS). The purpose of this non-disciplinary system is to alert managers to officers
who have been flagged for involvement in a predetermined number of specified events and
may be at risk of conduct that could expose them to discipline or personal harm or risk. This
system, currently in place, represents an opportunity for managers to counsel and, as
appropriate, intervene before the conduct or events reach a point that discipline or more
serious action is unavoidable. The key is intervention, not warning.
18. Lower the EIS Threshold from 5 to 3. The department should lower the EIS threshold
from five to three events in a rolling 12-month period. Not all events that trigger the EIS are
negative occurrences; some can be the result of an active officer doing a good job. But if
they do involve questionable conduct, the officers commander should be made aware of the
issue before an officer has amassed five such events. The officer should be identified and
offered counseling or other professional assistance before this point.
19. Recruit Problem Solvers and Good Decision Makers. The department should undertake a
close review of its recruit selection process components (exam, background, psychological
27
exam, and interviews) to maximize opportunities to identify applicants with behaviors and
experience that suggest they are successful problem solvers, advocates, de-escalators,
listeners, and generally good decision makers. This is not to say that officers can expect to
rely on persuasion and de-escalation in every situation. And most recruits can be trained in
effective problem-solving techniques. But intensified efforts to find applicants who already
appear to have skills in calming and defusing situations, rather than escalating them, would
benefit the department. The department is already well along in this effort to hire good
decision makers, as evidenced in the questions asked of applicants in their personal
questionnaire and the Chiefs Selection board each applicant must appear before.
Background investigators should conduct in-person interviews with applicants friends,
associates, employers, teachers, and family members. Investigators and interviewers should
ask pointed questions as to suitability, former acts of aggression, and any history of fighting
or violence, as well as adeptness at skills like de-escalation and mediation.
20. Hire the Most Psychologically Suitable Applicants. The department should modify its
current pass/fail psychological exam to one that bands applicants in most-suited, suited, and
not-suited categories of applicants. The department should be seeking the most suitable
applicants as police officers. By accepting those who merely pass, the department misses
an opportunity to select the most suited applicants when hiring is limited to a small number.
21. Mentor Younger Officers. The department should offer formal mentoring to younger
officers. This study revealed that the officers most commonly involved in use of force and
deadly force are younger, with less time in the department. This is understandable, as this
group makes up the patrol force, where such events can more often occur. But being aware
of that, the departments older, more seasoned veterans, including supervisors and
managers, can through a formal mentoring program work with these individuals on issues
such as daily stresses, career development, and more. Young officers could apply to be
considered, or the department could urge officers identified by the EIS to participate.
28
22. Count and Report OIS Incidents without Injury or Death. The department should count
all officer firearms discharges at a person as an officer-involved shooting event. Presently,
only shootings in which the officer strikes (injures or kills) a subject are counted as
officerinvolved shootings. Intent, not marksmanship, is what distinguishes an officerinvolved shooting. All such shootings are investigated the same way, but misses are not
counted and tracked in the same way.
29
Sources of data
The following provides an account of the data sources used for this portion of the report.
PlaceMatch - In order to examine the extent to which Albuquerque experienced a unique trend
in force against police officers, similar cities were identified. Going beyond a simple side-by-side
comparison of police force and population sizes, a more statistical approach is utilized for this
30
report. To identify similar cities to Albuquerque, PlaceMatch tool is utilized.6 This tool utilizes a
proprietary search algorithm to match U.S. cities based on a range of attributes. Matching
variables7 were utilized in the comparisons (see Table 1 below) to generate similar cities to
Albuquerque on crime, demographic and socioeconomic variables that may be related to useofforce.
% over 65
31
State
ALBUQUERQUE
NEW 7
MEXICO
North 8
Carolina
Nevada
9
1 Greensboro
2
Reno
City
State
Tulsa
Oklahoma
Columbus
Ohio
Salem
Oregon
3 Little Rock
Arkansas
10 Lexington
Kentucky
4 Nashville
Tennessee
11 Tampa
Florida
5 Indianapolis
Indiana
6 Durham
12 Oklahoma
Oklahoma
City
North 13
Winston- North
Carolina
Salem
Carolina
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) & Law Enforcement Officers Killed & Assaulted (LEOKA)
To assess trends violent crime and assaults against police officers, all recent available data from the
FBIs Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) and in the Law-Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted
(LEOKA) were used. The LEOKA data are archived with the Inter-University Consortium of
Political and Social Research (ICPSR) for the years 2005 through 20089. Using these data rates,
adjustments were made for the different sized populations (in general, for crime rates, and sworn
officer size, for assaults against police).
Multi-Relational Internal Affairs Database (MRIAD) Use-of-force data was compiled from
the Multi-Relational Internal Affairs Database (MRIAD) from 2007 through the first quarter of
2011. The APD Internal Affairs Unit specifically pulled data drawn from the Use-of-Force Report
form. This form contains information about a specific use-of-force incident, including
8 Dover, DE was eliminated from the list because, although it had a high matching score on the
other variables, it has such as small population that it did not provide an adequate comparison.
9 LEOKA data for 2009 has not yet been archived with ICPSR.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
32
demographics of the suspect(s), basic officer information, types of threat and actions posed by
suspects, types of force used by both police and suspect(s), and suspect injuries, when applicable.
Missing fields were discovered; for example, suspect and officer weapon use was nonexistent in
the data. An examination by APD IA staff required an additional cut of the data in order to fill in all
of the required fields. An examination of these new data showed that much of the missing data had
been restored, but there were still incomplete fields. Despite these gaps, this database provided
useful information. Future refinements of the queries used to generate these data may address
some of the findings discussed below.
Booking Data
In addition to the MRIAD data, APD provided the booking data for persons arrested for Refusal to
Obey (an Officer), Resisting Arrest, Battery on an Officer, and Assaults on an Officer (both Simple
and Aggravated) for 2009 and 2010. Although data was in its rawest form, for a select sample of
offenders estimates were generates of their overall offending based on the information in the
database as of April 18, 2011. This information provides an exploratory look at the types of
offenses most likely to result in a use-of-force situation, but could not be linked to the individual
incidents within the use-of-force database. Thus, although the data cannot be used o elaborate on
trends in use of force, in general, and assaults on police officers, in particular, it does serve as a
description of this type of suspect.
2005
2007
2009
33
White
African
American
79.6% 71.6%
2.8%
67.5%
3.1%
3.5%
Am Ind/Esk
4.9%
3.9%
5.1%
Asian/PI
2.4%
2.2%
2.6%
Other
10.3%
14.8%
21.3%
Hisp Origin
35.7%
39.9%
44%
(Because these categories are not mutually exclusive, they add up to more than 100%.)
Dispatched calls for police service increased from 447,330 to 558,812. This represents an increase
of nearly 25%. The Police Departments sworn strength went from 1,040 to 1,118 an increase of
7.5%.
Recent Trends in Violence and Assaults against Police in Albuquerque and Similar
Benchmark Cities Summary
points:
To assess general trends in violence in Albuquerque, trends in violent crime and in assaults
against the police were examined using data from the FBIs Uniform Crime Reports for the
years2005 through 2009. Trends in violence and assaults against police in Albuquerque
were also compared to those of several other cities with demographic and socioeconomic
characteristics similar to those of Albuquerque.
Compared to similar cities, Albuquerque had a high rate of assaults against police from
2005 through 2007. More recently, however, assaults against police in Albuquerque have
declined to levels comparable to those of similar cities.
From these data it does not appear that the recent rise in officer-involved shootings in
Albuquerque corresponds to trends in violent crime or assaults against police. Both violent
crime and assaults on officers have declined. These declines are similar to those in
comparable cities. However, currently available data from the Uniform Crime reports do not
34
include 2010 and 2011, the time period during which officer-involved shooting have
increased in Albuquerque.
Trends in Violent Crime
Violent crime can be examined utilizing data from the FBIs Uniform Crime Reports for the
matched cities and Albuquerque from 2005 through 200910. Figure 1 provides a graphical display of
the violent crime rate (per 100,000 population) in Albuquerque in relation to the average rate of
violent crime for the comparison cities. Overall, with few exceptions, violent crime is on the
decline in Albuquerque (and most comparison cities). Violent crime rates in the comparison cities
were of a relatively similar magnitude11 to Albuquerque. Lexington, Kentucky and Nashville,
Tennessee witnessed larger declines throughout the 2005 2009 period12, while Albuquerque and
other comparison cities showed a more gentle decline over the entire period with a relatively larger
decline in the most recent two years.
10 UCR data for 2010, at the time of this report, is still preliminary and thus, is not included.
11 This is not surprising, given that violent crime rate is one of the criteria used in the algorithm
utilized by PlaceMatch to select the comparison cities.
12 Little Rock, Arkansas had a relatively steep decline throughout the 2005 2008 period, but
witnessed an increase in 2009.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
35
Figure 1: Trend in Violent Crime Rates for Albuquerque & Averaged Comparison
Cities 2005-2009
Based on the available crime rate data, we are confident that these comparison cities provide an
appropriate benchmark with which to examine the trend in force against police officers in
Albuquerque.
36
Two basic patterns are observed in assault rates against police employees: one declining and one
increasing. The cities experiencing a decline in the assault rate against police officers were:
Albuquerque, NM; Durham, NC; Greensboro, NC; Little Rock, AR; Nashville, TN; Tampa, FL;
and Tulsa, OK. The remaining cities (Indianapolis, IN; Lexington, KY; Oklahoma City, OK; Reno,
NV; Salem; OR; and Winston-Salem, NC) experienced increases in force against police officers.
Figure 2 shows the trend in assaults against police officers from 2005 through 2008 for the cities
witnessing a decline. Albuquerque, relative to the other comparison cities,14 witnessed the steepest
decline in the assault rate. Between 2005 and 2008, Albuquerque had a 48 percent relative decline
in the assault rate against police officers, from approximately 273 per 1,000 employees in 2005 to
143 per 1,000 employees in 2008. This decline is second to Greensboro, NC which had a 54
percent decline in the same time period. The average rate of relative decline among comparison
cities witnessing a decline was around 25 percent.
Figure 3 shows the trend for the cities with rising assault rates against officers, averaged for all
comparison cities. Indianapolis experienced a 61 percent relative increase, jumping from 263
assaults per 1,000 employees in 2005 to over 424 assaults per 1,000 employees in 2008.15 That rate
is the highest among the comparison cities. Reno, NV and Lexington, KY also experienced a
doubling of the risk of assault over the 2005 2008 time period.
14 Columbus, OH is not included in the average calculation because information was unavailable.
15 These, and all rates, are presented in terms of average risk, i.e. that the risk of assault is spread
evenly among all employees within a police agency. This is almost never the case. There are some
individuals whose risk, for a multitude of reasons, is far greater than other officers.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
37
Cities included in the average trend for comparison cities are: Durham, NC; Greensboro, NC; Little Rock, AR;
Nashville, TN; Tampa, FL; and Tulsa, OK
Although the rate of force against police officers has declined in Albuquerque and many similar
cities from 2005 to 2008 using FBI data, the picture is incomplete. It is worth noting that APD had
a comparatively high rate of assault against officers from 2005 through 2007, and then had a
substantial decline in 2008. The 2008 level put APD more in line with other cities. A similar trend
exists in Tulsa, OK which provides the best regional comparison.
Utilizing the Albuquerque Police Departments own use-of-force data, a more thorough
examination of the more recent time period is provided utilizing specifics about the events,
focusing on incident, officer, and suspect related characteristics.
38
Cities included in the average for comparison cities are: Indianapolis, IN; Lexington, KY; Oklahoma City, OK;
Reno, NV; Salem, OR; and Winston-Salem, NC
Summary Points
APD data on 2,024 reported use-of-force cases were analyzed to assess trends and patterns
in these cases for the period of 2007 through the first quarter of 2011.
Use-of-force cases have declined fairly steadily from 2008 through 2011. Assaultive actions
against APD officers by suspects have also declined during this period.
These data suggest that the increase in police involved shootings in Albuquerque does not
coincide with any general increase in the propensity of APD officers or suspects to use force
against one another.
39
16 Incidents from the second quarter of 2011 have been excluded as there are not data from the full
quarter. However, as part of an overall analysis of use of force incidents they will be included in
later analyses.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
40
Assaultive whereby the suspect used physical force against a police officer;
Physical resistance representing a general attempt to extricate himself (or herself) from
police custody;
Flight.17
Table 4 lists the number of suspect actions recorded in use-of-force encounters by the type of action
performed. In an encounter the suspect may take more than one action. For example, he may use
words/actions that indicate resistance, attempt to flee and then become assaultive. When the
suspect only took one action, he/she fled in 10 percent of cases and was assaultive in 37 percent. In
instances where the suspect took multiple actions, physical resistance and assaultive behavior were
usually present. When the APD officer indicated the suspect performed only one action, in 37
percent of cases the suspect was classified as assaultive. When two actions were categorized, the
suspect most often was assaultive and physically resisted (66.7% and 74%, respectively). Finally
when the officer indicated the suspect performed 3 of the suspect action options, the suspect was
classified as assaultive, physically resisted, and utilized actions or words (91%, 96%, and 88%,
respectively). However, from these data the sequence of actions cannot be determined. For
example, did the suspect flee and then became assaultive when the police caught up, or did the
suspect become physically resistive and then flee? Suspect action is missing from 15 percent of
incidents.
17 There is a field for suspect code which indicates whether the suspect threatened, attempted or
carried out his/her threat. Most suspects carried out their threat; however, it is often unclear what
the threat or action was.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
41
(576
Cases)
48.1%
74.0% 11.3%
66.7%
(338
Cases)
87.9%
96.4% 24.3%
91.4%
(43
Cases)
100%
100%
100%
100%
Total
Mean
1364
Cases
54.2%
65.2% 16.8%
65.1%
As shown in Figure 5, assaultive18 behavior is the largest category of suspect action. However, the
trend in assaultive suspect behaviorthe most serious form of suspect actionis largely
downward. Incidents with an assaultive suspect peaked in the second quarter of 2007 and have
declined to a current level on line with what it was in the first quarter of 2007. The trends in the
other types of suspect action are largely flat with the exception of flight. This type of suspect
action was zero until the fourth quarter of 2009 when it peaked, but has declined since then.19
Figure 5: Trends in Suspect Actions in Use-of-Force Cases by Quarter
18 Assaultive refers to a suspect who uses hand (fists), arms/legs, head, teeth, etc. against an
officer.
19 This type of trend could be indicative of more detailed record keeping. It is unlikely that
suspects only decided to run from the police as a preferred action in 2009.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
42
Weapon use by suspects also appears to have been stable over time. The use of force database
contains a displayed code to indicate that the suspect displayed a weapon that was visible to the
officer. In the majority of cases, the suspect weapon field is missing. Weapons were reportedly
displayed or used by suspects in 11% of cases (215 out of 2024 use-of-force incidents). When
reported, weapons used included firearms (14%), edged weapons (38%), blunt objects (16%), and
vehicles (23%). However, limitations to the data make it impossible to distinguish between events
Suspect
Weapon
Gun
Edged
Blunt
Vehicle
Other
% of
Incidents
14.0%
38.1%
15.8%
23.3%
16.7%
where a weapon was not present and events where a weapon was used
but not reported. This precludes firm conclusions about patterns and
trends in weapon use in these cases. In addition, it cannot be determined
if the suspect(s) merely possessed a weapon (concealed or otherwise),
attempted to use, or actually used a weapon against an officer. The trend
in weapon possession by suspects was stable from 2007 through 2011,
with the exception of edged weapons, which show a marked increase in the 2nd half of 2010 before
declining.
43
Frequenc
y
397
1014
302
12
612
Percent Valid
Percent
19.7%
50.1%
62.3%
14.9%
18.6%
0.6%
0.7%
30.2%
37.6%
877
43.3%
53.9%
176
8.7%
10.8%
The empty-hand Takedown Method and the Impact Method denote physical uses of force,
although in both the officers body is the only weapon used. The impact method, as indicated by
the Albuquerque Police Department use-of-force form, represents the use of either an empty hand,
20 Actions do not add up to the total of 2024 incidents (nor do percents add up to 100) because an
individual event could involve more than one action.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
44
closed fist or other body part as an impact weapon, as opposed to an empty hand takedown of a
suspect.
Figure 6 presents the trend in bodily force utilized by APD officers. The trend in utilizing the body
as an impact weapon was relatively stable, with a high during late 2008 and early 2009. Since then,
the reported use of the Impact Method has declined. The Takedown Method, as a more common
police use of force, has steadily declined, mirroring the trend in use-of-force incidents more
generally.
Weapons used by officers in use of force cases are shown in Table 6. Note that APDs use-of-force
database does not contain information about cases in which officers shot or shot at suspects. (The
former are recorded in APDs officer-involved shooting database). The discussion below focuses on
use of less-lethal weapons. However, a small number of firearm uses, reflecting displays or
accidental discharges, do appear in Table 6. APD officers have a wide array of less-lethal weapons
at their disposal to use in use-of-force encounters, including batons, bean bags, Tasers, OC spray
(or other chemical agents), and other less-lethal impact weapons.
45
Percent
42
3.7%
Bean Bag
34
3.0%
Tasers
550
48.2%
16
1.4%
373
32.7%
K-9 Bite
67
5.9%
Misc. Less-Lethal
Weapon
29
2.5%
Firearms
31
2.7%
Baton
Chemical Agent
114221
In use-of-force incidents where a weapon was listed, Tasers were present in nearly half of the
encounters (48.2%). The next most common weapon was a chemical agent (most often OC/Pepper
Spray), present in nearly a third of the incidents. Tasers or chemical agents (i.e., pepper spray)
were used by officers in 81% of the cases involving the use of a less-lethal weapon.
However, limitations to the data make it impossible to distinguish between events where a weapon
was not needed and events where a weapon was used but the weapon use was not reported. This
precludes conclusions about patterns and trends in weapon use in these cases. It is recommended
that APD alter its use-of-force form to include an indicator for whether a weapon was used. This
would provide a more complete view of the types of incidents that required a weapon and the type
21 Frequencies do not add up to the total of use-of-force incidents because of both missing data and
incidents where a weapon (either lethal or less-lethal) was not required. Based on these data it is
difficult to determine the source of the missing data.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
46
of weapon required. Second, APD should incorporate its Officer-Involved Shooting database into
the general use-of-force database, given that a firearm discharge represents the most serious use of
force available to an officer.
Summary Points
Use-of-force cases are most likely to occur: during the swing shift (15:00 to 22:00 hours)
and during certain portions of the graveyard shift (22:00 to 3:00); on Fridays and Saturdays;
and in the Southeast, Southwest, and Valley areas of the city. These patterns stand
somewhat in contrast to officer-involved shootings, which are more likely to occur on
Tuesdays and Thursdays and in the northern parts of the city.
Since late 2009, there has been a substantial increase in use-of-force incidents stemming
from incidents that initially involved an assault. This number has declined since mid-2010
but still remains high compared to earlier years. Conclusions about this trend must be made
very cautiously because the nature of the incident was not recorded for nearly half of the
use-of-force incidents. If this represents a valid trend, however, it may signal a change in
the types of events that are resulting in use-of-force cases, and this could have implications
for patterns in officer-involved shootings. This issue may warrant further investigation.
47
Table 7 summarizes patterns in use of force incidents by time of day and day of week. 22 If the day
of the week was unrelated to when a use-of-force incident occurred, then there should be an equal
number of incidents occurring on each day of the week (i.e. each day should have the same number
of incidents, approximately 14.2 percent of the total). As shown in
Table 7, Friday and Saturday have a disproportionate share of incidents. Of all of the incidents
where the day-of-the-week was known, 38.7 percent occurred on a Friday or Saturday. Taken as a
whole, force by police officers is less likely to occur on weekdays than weekends, with roughly
1112 percent of incidents occurring on each weekday. This is somewhat different from the pattern
for officer-involved shootings, which are most likely to occur on Tuesdays and Thursdays,
according to APDs reporting.
Table 7 also shows that the risk of an incident is lowest from 3 a.m. until 3 p.m. However, that risk
climbs steadily afterwards, with nearly half of the incidents occurring between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m.
22 The start time for a given day is 03:00, rather than the typical midnight start-time.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
48
0900 1500
1500
2100
- 2100
0300
% of
Cases
All
19.0%
12.5%
11.1%
8.0%
9.9%
8.9%
13.4%
16.2%
15.5%
12.6%
28.6%
29.0%
33.8%
35.0%
30.9%
43.5%
45.1%
38.9%
41.6%
46.6%
14.0%
11.7%
12.2%
11.8%
11.6%
8.1%
14.5%
12.0%
12.3%
9.0%
12.2%
24.6%
23.5%
28.5%
55.0%
53.0%
47.3%
18.6%
20.1%
100.0%
Location of Incident
There are six defined areas of Albuquerque, which are listed in Table 8. Within Albuquerque, useofforce incidents are more likely to occur in the southern sectors of the city, with the Valley area also
having a higher-than-average proportion.23 The Foothills and Northwest sectors are least likely to
experience an incident, with 9 percent and 6 percent of all incidents where the area was known,
respectively. This pattern also differs from the recent geographical pattern in officerinvolved
shootings, approximately three-quarters of which have occurred in the northern parts of the city.
%
of
Total
23 If force against police officers were randomly distributed throughout Albuquerque we would
expect each sector of the city to experience approximately 16.7 percent of incidents.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
49
Unknown 49
Foothills
176
Northeast 322
Northwest 122
Southeast 526
Southwes 389
t
Valley
444
Total 2024
2.4%
8.7%
15.9%
5.9%
26.0%
19.2%
21.9%
Assault/Battery
Assault/Battery on Officer
Other Part I
Resisting Arrest
SWAT Action
Other Offense
Missing
Valid
Frequency Percent Percent
267
13.2% 22.4%
387
19.1% 32.5%
125
6.2%
10.5%
157
7.8%
13.2%
15
0.7%
1.3%
338
16.7% 28.4%
820
42.0%
50
The trends in the reason for the use-of-force incident are displayed in Figures 8 through 11. These
trend lines must be interpreted cautiously, given that the reason for the encounter is missing in over
40 percent of cases. Resisting arrest26 (Figure 8) encounters have declined over the years, from a
high of over 40 in the 2nd quarter of 2007 to zero beginning in 2010.
Figure 8: Trend in Resisting Arrest Encounters by Quarter (2007 2011)
Figure 9 shows a slight rising trend in assaults on police officers. This trend peaks in the middle of
2010 before declining. It is unclear whether this represents an actual change in suspect behavior
towards police officers in general or a change in record management. To clarify, it cannot be
determined that the change in the frequency of assaults on police are due to more suspects
assaulting police officers or whether it is due to changes in how police officers code events. For
example, when the encounter is listed as assaulting a police officer; roughly 15 percent of suspects
actions are not described as assaultive. And even though there are incidents where suspect arrests
include the charge of resisting arrest in 2010, there are zero resisting arrest cases for 2010 in
the use-of-force database.
26 This particular reason for use-of-force warrants further detail. While the case is listed as
Resisting Arrest, it is unclear what the initial offense warranting an arrest was.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
51
In Figure 10 the trend in assault encounters shows a steady pattern in 2007 and 2008, but shows a
sharp rise in the latter half of 2009, peaking in the 2nd quarter of 2010. This trend represents cases
where the reason listed was assault (often on a household member), but may also include assaults
on police officers where a police officer was not specifically mentioned. The data suggest that there
was an increase during 2010 in use-of-force cases stemming from incidents that involved assaults,
though such encounters are now declining.
Figure 10: Trend in Assault Encounters by Quarter (2007 - 2011)
52
Figure 11 shows trends for cases arising from incidents labeled as non-crimes (such as traffic stops)
and minor crimes (such as trespassing). What is evident in this figure is a large number of
incidents where, at least initially, it was not obvious that a use of force would be required.
Something about these events escalated to the point that the officer(s) felt the need to use force
against the suspect(s). Similar to the other trends, the trend in non-crime events peaked in the 2nd
half of 2010 before declining.
Figure 11: Trend in Non-Part I Crime by Quarter (2007 - 2011)
The completeness of this data element (reason for encounter) improved in 2010. Whereas roughly
45 to 50 percent of use-of-force incidents had the reason for incident field missing before, this
number has dropped to 27 percent of incidents in 2010. However, to provide a clearer picture of
these types of events, it would be useful to have a link to the original call-for-service to gain a
better understanding of the initial encounter between officers and suspects in use-of-force
encounters. Missing data and/or changes in how events are classified also make it difficult to reach
firm conclusions about trends. Changes in Assaults on Police could represent actual changes in
suspect behavior or a change in recording on the use-of-force form. To illustrate, cases with a
recorded reason of resisting arrest fell to zero in 2010; yet booking data (discussed below) show
that there were offenders arrested for this offense in 2010.
53
Approximately two-thirds of use-of-force cases involve a single officer. This contrasts with
the finding that 23% of police-involved shootings involve a single officer, according to
APDs analysis of shooting incidents from 2004 through 2011.
One Officer
1374
68%
Two Officers
501
25%
Three
Officers
Four Officers
111
5%
38
2%
54
2024
Total
Officer Characteristics
Among officers involved in these force incidents, over 90 percent of them were assigned to Field
Services/Patrol rather than specialized assignments. This is not surprising, given that this type of
assignment has the greatest contact with the public. Table 10 summarizes the officer characteristics.
These officers are male, and either White (roughly 63 percent) or Hispanic (roughly 36 percent).
(This closely approximates the gender and racial/ethnic composition of officers involved in
shootings.) The officers who were involved in these incidents are almost entirely Privates (with
P1C as the most likely officer rank). On average they are 32 years old with approximately 5.5 years
between their date of hire and the force incident. According to the Albuquerque Police Department
2010 Annual Report, the average age of sworn officers is 38 with 11 years of service,
demonstrating that officers involved in use-of-force incidents tend to be younger with
correspondingly fewer years of service.
Table 10 Officer Characteristics
Characteristic
Total
Cases27
% or Avg.
Male
2663
100.0%
White
2799
62.7%
Hispanic
Rank (P1C or
P2C)
2799
35.8%
2852
92.3%
Age
2844
32.0
27 Frequencies do not add up to the total number of officers due to missing data on individual
items. The frequencies also are greater than the total number of officers because we have allowed
over counting for officers involved in multiple incidents with multiple officers. Frequencies are
summed across all available data.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
55
Years on Force
2730
5.5
Officers with 1+
Incidents
Officers with 5+
Incidents
Officers with 10+
Incidents
Frequency of
Officers
% of
Officers
Frequency of
Incidents
% of
Incidents
Avg.
Incidents
Per Officer
871
100.0%
2858
100.0%
3.3
188
21.6%
1692
59.2%
9.0
55
6.3%
843
29.5%
15.3
The majority of officers identified in the use-of-force database were involved in only 1 use-of-force
incident (Table 11). Table 11 also shows, however, that use-of-force cases tend to be concentrated
among officers. Approximately 22% of officers involved in use-of-force cases were involved in
nearly 60 percent of all use-of-force incidents. When the focus is narrowed to officers with ten or
more incidents28, approximately 6 percent of officers involved in use-of-force cases accounted for
28 An identifier was only counted in the 10+ subsample if both the officer date-of-birth and date-ofhire data were provided. Absent these two pieces of information, it cannot be accurately determined
if the identifier represents unique individuals and may involved grouping separate officers who
share these singular data points. 29 http://www.cabq.gov/police/chief.html, accessed March 3rd,
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
56
nearly 30 percent of all use-of-force incidents. This group of 55 officers represents only 5 percent
of all officers in APD. Each officer in this group was involved in 10 or more use-of-force cases.
In sum, with a sworn strength of approximately 1,100 officers,29 these data indicate that from 2007
through May, 2011 nearly 80 percent of APD all officers were involved in at least one use-of-force
incident. Approximately 22 percent of all officers were involved in 60 percent of all incidents, and
5 percent were involved in nearly 30 percent of incidents. The officers with ten or more incidents
are also more likely to be in the Southern sector of Albuquerque. Roughly half of the use-of-force
incidents in the Southwest and Southeastern areas involve these officers.
% or
Avg.
Male
100.0%
White
74.4%
Hispanic
Rank (P1C or
P2C)
23.6%
Age
29.4
Years on Force
4.4
96.9%
Table 12 summarizes the characteristics of officers with ten or more use-of-force incidents. These
officers tend to be younger than the other use-of-force officers (under 30) and have fewer years of
service with Albuquerque Police (avg. = 4.4 years).29 They also are more likely to be white.
Virtually all of these officers (96%) had a patrol assignment.
2011
29 Note these averages are even lower than the Department average for officer age and years of
service provided in the 2010 Annual Report.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
57
Using an identifier constructed from the use-of-force data (based on date of hire and date of birth),
it was possible to examine the involvement of these officers in shooting incidents as recorded in
APDs database on officer-involved shootings. Between 2006 and 2010, there were 37 OIS
incidents. Where both date-of-birth and date-of-hire data were available, 47 officers were involved
in these incidents. The officers in the high use-of-force group were linked to 9 officer-involved
shooting events, accounting for 20% of the total during this time period. While this may not seem
large, these officers make up 6.3 percent of all of the use-of-force officers and 5 percent of all
Albuquerque Police officers. It seems that these officers are disproportionately represented in both
use-of-force and officer shooting incidents.
There are also indications that officers with 10 or more force incidents use more serious forms of
force. For example, when examining the type of force used by these officers, they were more
likely to utilize the Impact Method as a means of controlling a suspect (14.6% vs. 8.9% for other
officers).
As a further illustration Table 13 provides a breakdown of suspect behavior versus officer(s) level
of force. The table is broken down by whether the incident involved an officer with 10 or more
useof-force incidents versus incidents with other officers. In both cases, when a suspect resists an
officer, the Takedown Method is the most common response (roughly 60% of cases overall).
However, for the average officer when a suspect is physically resistive the officer resorts to the
more forceful Impact Method only 10 percent of the time. In contrast, in the same scenario, officers
with many use-of-force incidents utilize the Impact Method roughly 17 percent of the time. The
average officer is more likely to utilize the Impact Method when the suspect is assaultive (10%),
but not as often as the frequently forceful officers (14%).
58
Other
Officers
Overcame
Resistanc
e
Takedown Impact
Suspec Physically
49%
60%
10%
t
Resisted
Forcefu Assaultiv
42%
56%
10%
l Action e
49%
61%
17%
43%
54%
14%
Virtually all of the use of force incidents (97%) involved a single suspect. All suspects were
male; a majority were Hispanic (58%) and nearly a third (29%) were white. These
demographics are very similar to those reported by APD for those shot by the police.
Compared to officers involved in use-of-force cases, suspects are more likely to be Hispanic
and less likely to be white.
Suspects arrested for assault or battery of a police officer, resisting arrest, or refusing to
obey an officer tend to have extensive criminal histories. This conclusion is based on
examination of the booking sheets of a sample of offenders arrested for these offenses
during 2009 and 2010. Two issues worth further inquiry are: 1) whether a small number of
repeat suspects are involved in a disproportionate number of use-of-force and police
30 Percents do not add to one hundred because more than one action was available in a given
incident.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
59
involved shooting cases; and 2) whether there have been changes over time in the
backgrounds of offenders involved in such incidents.
Offenders per Incident and Offender Demographics
The APDs use-of-force data provide fewer details on suspects, and this information is recorded
less consistently than is officer information. As shown below, virtually all incidents (97%) involve
a single suspect. Of the remainder, most of those cases involve only one other suspect.
Single
Suspect
Two
Suspects
Three
Suspects
Four
Suspects
Total
1958
97%
55
3%
0%
0%
2021
Total
Cases31
1837
% of Total
or Average
1082
544
1789
100.0%
58.1%
29.2%
30.8
31 Frequencies do not add up to the total number of suspects due to missing data on individual
items. The frequencies also are greater than the total number of suspects because we have allowed
over counting across all suspects involved in an incident and incidents involving repeated contacts
with the same suspect.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
60
Table 14 provides the basic descriptive information on the suspects involved in use of
forceincidents. All of the suspects were identified male32, either White or Hispanic (with
approximately 58% of those being Hispanic), and approximately 31 years old. The demographics
of suspects involved in useof-force cases overall are very similar to those of suspects in policeinvolved shootings as reported elsewhere by APD (APD Review of Officer-Involved Shootings,
2004-2011).
Criminal Histories of Subjects Involved in Assaults on Police, Resisting Arrest, and Refusing to
Obey an Officer
The final analysis below examines the criminal histories of a sample of subjects arrest for the times
of crimes typically involved in use-of-force incidents. The analysis is based on booking sheets for
a sample of offenders arrested by APD officers during 2009 and 2010 for assault or battery of an
officer, resisting arrest, or refusing to obey an officers order. This represents an exploratory
analysis, as these offenders could not be matched with individual use-of-force incidents. However,
it provides some sense of the types of offenders likely to be included in the use-of-force database.
Individual offenders could be charged with more than one of these offenses in a given incident, so
the analysis allows for double, and in some cases triple, counting. In addition, the offense histories
represent their state of offending as of mid-April 2011. Information from the booking sheets
consisted of electronic documents rather than an electronic database. In order to efficiently analyze
these data, a subsample approach was used. Included were those offenders with a ready summary
of their booking numbers, which were then aggregated by offender to yield a complete count of his
(and sometimes her)33 offending.
32 M was the only recorded sex for suspects; however, an examination of booking data lists
several female offenders.
33 Female suspects were not listed in the Use-of-Force database. In addition, there are offenders
who were arrested for resisting arrest in 2010; however, in the reason for use-of-force, resisting
arrest in 2010 was zero.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
61
Table 15 provides a summary of the offending histories of suspects charged with using force
against a police officer during 2009 and 2010. The minimum, maximum and average number of
offenses are provided. The median number of offenses is also shown to counteract the influence of
certain individuals with an exceedingly large number of offenses.34
The data show that offenders arrested for these offenses tend to have extensive criminal histories.
For each offense, offenders averaged 11 to 22 prior arrests. The median number of prior offenses
ranged from 5 to 8 for most categories but was 20 for offenders who committed an aggravated
assault of an officer. While many offenders have several prior offenses, there is a fair degree
(approximately 16% of our sample) of first-time offenders. These data are not sufficient to
determine whether offenders with extensive criminal histories are involved in a disproportionate
share of use-of-force cases or whether their involvement in use-of-force cases has been increasing.
These may be issues worthy of further study by APD.
Max
Median Average
236
22.1
44
2
1
1
1
46
70
64
68
20
7
8
5
19.5
13.2
20.4
10.8
11
47
17
81
34 The median indicates the point in the data that divides the sample into 2 equal groups. On the
other hand, the average (or mean) takes into account the values, which is why the mean for Assault
on an Officer in 2010 is 25 (due to a single offender with 236 priors) while the median is 8.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
62
Introduction
Over the years and throughout the United States, in their reviews of police use of deadly force,
local prosecutors, grand juries and courts have shown a reluctance to second-guess the decisions
made by police officers. Nonetheless, there have been dozens of cases, most recently in New
Orleans and Miami, where federal prosecutors have brought federal charges against police officers
for alleged criminal civil rights violations. Further, there have been many cases of federal and state
civil rights actions against police officers.
Largely as a result of civil rights lawsuits and sporadic civil unrest following police use of deadly
force, police departments across the United States for decades have been reviewing their useofforce policies and training. Many departments have placed greater restrictions on when a police
officer may discharge a weapon. As an example, most progressive police departments today forbid
officers to discharge weapons at or from a moving vehicle. Departments that initiated these new
policies and training years ago were successful not only at bringing about needed changes, but also
in dispelling concern about the changes. Since 1972, when the NYPD adopted the policy change
regarding moving vehicles, for example, not one officer has lost his or her life as a result of
intentionally being struck by a vehicle driven by an offender trying to avoid capture or arrest.
Changes in policies and training that reduce police shootings can be controversial. Officers must
understand that the purpose of such changes is not to hinder their performance, but rather to
increase their level of safety on the street, while also protecting them from possible civil or
criminal prosecutions. Prior to the official implementation of a policy or training change, a police
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
63
chief can develop support for the change within his department by personally delivering the
message at roll calls. If the police chief is going to institute a controversial change in policy and
related training, he or she has the obligation to defend the decision in front of officers and accept
questions.
One area in which police shootings can be reduced is in handling persons with mental illness.
Police officers encounter mentally ill persons in their homes or on the streets on a daily basis across
the nation. Though some mentally ill people can be dangerous and pose a threat to responding
police officers and others, persons with mental illness are not often armed with a gun. This is
especially true of mentally ill persons in a citys homeless population. When they are armed, it is
usually with an edged or striking weapon.
The APD has taken many appropriate steps to reduce confrontations with all people, and in
particular persons with mental illness. The department has created Critical Incident Teams and
Crisis Outreach and Support Teams and has developed corresponding training. The department has
adopted less-lethal weapons. Training includes both traditional and innovative scenario approaches
to use-of-force decision making. To further ensure it was taking the right steps and to understand
why it has been faced with a high number of officer-involved shooting incidents, the department
engaged the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to examine the conditions that may be
associated with what seems to be a high rate of police-suspect encounters that involve the use of
force by APD officers.
As part of this review, PERF examined the training provided by the department to its recruit and
veteran officers in the areas that prepare them to deal with potentially violent or dangerous people.
This includes communications skills, defensive tactics, and use of force (including firearms)
training. PERF conducted interviews with the members of the department responsible for
providing this training, reviewed training curricula and materials, and compared these findings to
the best professional practices employed by other law enforcement agencies. PERF looked at
64
Recruit Academy
Overall, the APD does a commendable job of bringing together in its academy training curriculum
the areas of instruction needed to prepare new officers for incidents in which they must assess
threats and handle potentially dangerous situations peaceably when possible and with the least
amount of force that is appropriate when force is necessary. Through classroom instruction and
practical exercises, recruits are prepared to demonstrate the proficiency needed to graduate from
the academy. The departments training managers and instructors have taken steps to implement
more integrated training during which trainees are called upon to demonstrate their decision
making skills and proficiencies while engaged in dynamic scenario situations. This concept is a
best practice in both academy and in-service training settings.
The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) holds a 26-week in-house academy for new recruits. In
addition to training its own recruits, this academy serves other departments in the region. The
academy is certified by the State of New Mexico and is regulated by the Law Enforcement
Academy Board. Among the most critical topics covered at the academy is the police use of force.
A prime requirement is that the use of force lesson plan must be presented in its entirety by a New
Mexico Department of Public Safety trained instructor. Recruits are given a 16-hour block of
instruction that follows the Department of Public Safetys two-day Power Point presentation.
65
use of force, use of force models, and special situations and use of force considerations and
options.
Though the lesson plan addresses several models, the Department of Public Safety has adopted a
specific Use of Force Continuum, and the department trains its officers in the Reactive Control
Model (RCM), which was developed by Criminal Justice Training and Consulting Services of
Santa Fe, NM in the 1990s. Linear in design, it seeks to match the actions of an officer to the
behavioral cues of the subject. The RCM predates the introduction of Energy Control Weapons
(ECWs),35 which are therefore not part of the continuum. Currently, the department makes TASER
handheld devices available to field officers, and TASER shotguns are available to SWAT officers.
Departmental policy places the use of TASERs in the yellow column of the RCM, along with
empty hand techniques and OC chemical agents (see the graphic on the next page).
Review of the departments training materials and PERFs interviews of training personnel finds
that the RCM, how it should be considered by officers, and the departments Use of Force Policy
are addressed in detail during recruit-level training when covering use of force tactics. In fact, the
entry-level curriculum is quite extensive and includes discussion of several other use-of-force
models, including: the Ohio Model, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) model
(now discontinued), the Desmedt Model, and an Incident Management Intervention Model (IMIM)
used by several Canadian agencies.
Models like these are based upon the principle that police officers must use only the degree of force
that is appropriate to address the threat they face or legitimately perceive and that is sufficient
for the officer to establish and maintain control. Typical of linear models, the RCM adopted by the
department depicts clear-cut segments. It aligns behavioral cues to officer actions but does not offer
a clear depiction that cues and actions can move back and forth as a situation escalates or
deescalates. However, this concept is explained to recruits and officers.
35 Energy Control Weapons are also known as Electronic Control Devices (ECDs) which is how
the department refers to its TASER devices.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
66
The degree of force necessary in a situation, or how rapidly a situation may escalate, will also vary
from situation to situation and officer to officer. For example, the level of confidence officers have
in their ability to control a given situation may vary greatly. One officer may be fully confident in
his or her ability to control a particular subject with nothing more than weaponless physical force,
while another lacks that confidence. These confidence assessments carry over into officers
perceptions of the risk at hand and into the development of each officers tactical approach.
Following is the Use of Force Continuum adopted by the Department of Public Safety and the
Albuquerque Police Department:
67
The most important aspect of any Use of Force Model or Continuum should be that it permits the
officer to select an intervention option at any level. There is no expectation that a situation must
escalate step by step to the use of deadly force; a situation may start there. Risk assessment is
ongoing and may need to be accomplished in a split-second. Selected options may need to be
changed before they can be carried out. The entire process is dynamic and changing until the
situation is controlled.
Recognizing that there are dozens of different continuums in use across law enforcement today, and
that there is little uniformity in how levels of resistance and the appropriate police response are
defined, FLETC has discontinued using a force continuum in its use-of-force training. FLETC
concluded that use- of-force continuums are a cognitive tool, but theyre not very useful in the
rapidly evolving dynamics of a critical incident.
FLETCs decision is rooted in Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989), in which the U.S.
Supreme Court established that police officers may use the amount of force that is reasonable to
control subjects during a lawful seizure. The court held that the test of reasonableness under the
Fourth Amendment cannot be given a precise definition or mechanical application. The court held
that objective reasonableness is established according to circumstances and the totality of facts
known to the officer at the time he or she took the forceful action.
FLETC therefore took the position that use-of-force continuums attempt to accomplish exactly
what the Supreme Court said cannot be done. That is, they seek to match a specific subject action
to a specific officer response, regardless of the totality of circumstances known to the officer. John
Bostain of the Enforcement Operations Division at FLETC said, Its impossible for a model to
account for things like known violent history of the suspect; duration of the action; size, age, and
condition of the officer and suspect; and other facts that may make up the totality of
circumstances.
68
In addition to instruction on the RCM, the Albuquerque Police Department also exposes recruits to
Constitutional law, the concept of reasonableness, and how that relates to the use of and what
constitutes necessary force. It is stressed that the various degrees of use of force used by an
officer need not escalate or deescalate according to their ranking in the RCM. Recruits are
informed that the degree of force that is reasonable and necessary may begin at any appropriate
level, including deadly force if it reasonable and necessary, but that their actions must stand up to
legal review.
APD trainers provide the recruits with examples of severe officer misconduct, excessive force, and
brutality. They also point out that instances in which any use of force is needed are infrequent. The
difference between a show of force and the actual use of force is explained. Other key areas of
instruction are typical of topics covered in useof-force lesson plans found in law enforcement
agencies throughout the United States. The most critical instructional topics presented include
those dealing with:
Code of Ethics
Firearms confrontation
69
In separate blocks of instruction, recruits are informed about the legal aspects of the use of force
and the psychological aspects of using deadly force.
Firearms Training
Historically, the APDs entry-level and in-service range training has focused on proficiency skills
and marksmanship. Beginning with the 105th Academy Session, emphasis has shifted to officer
survival instruction an integrated decisional/situational approach to shooting. Recruits will now
be provided two weeks of skill building with traditional turning targets followed by four additional
days of live-fire drills. Recruits are scheduled to return to the range prior to graduation for five
more days of officer survival instruction involving scenario-based, live-fire and shoot/dont shoot
training.
Firearms Qualification
The critical nature of firearms training demands that recruits achieve four benchmarks:
Meet a passing score of 80% firing proficiency. Those firing a score between 80 and 82 are
given remedial training before their next scheduled range date.
Pass a Limited Scope Performance Test (LSPT) which is skills related (firearms handling,
loading, unloading, etc.)
In some other areas of training, recruits thought to benefit from minor reinforcement may graduate
from the academy with instructions to their Field Training Officer to focus on building strength in
that skill. Recruits who exhibit challenges in the area of firearms decision making and proficiency
and are non-responsive to remedial efforts fail the academy.
70
71
There is no expectation that each situation will result in a weapon discharge by the officer. The
situation presented can be modified to end without the use of force or the application of various
less-lethal force options. Recruits are encouraged to handle situations using options in a way they
might on the street. They can even postpone a high-risk entry by waiting for back-up officers or
canine support, but the scenarios likely will morph, demanding some action by the officer.
In an effort to present the most realistic and emotionally charged scenarios possible, the role
players who interact with recruits are trained actors who are briefed on how they might play the
roles and what to expect from recruits. Trainers attempt to create situations that test recruits
awareness of risks within their surroundings. By integrating such mundane police tasks such as
checking for warrants and obtaining or confirming license and registration information, trainers
instill the importance of remaining constantly aware of ones surroundings and not allowing
diversions to cause them to drop their guard.
By presenting scenarios with varying demands and stresses, the trainers hope to identify recruits
who are dangerously meek as well as those who are overly aggressive. Trainers can then ensure
that these recruits are afforded coaching and exposure to additional scenarios before determining if
the recruits are suited for police work.
72
Biased policing
Dealing with the mentally ill. This is a three-hour block of instruction focusing on an
overview of mental disorders, logistics of dealing with disturbed persons, and how to best
interact with persons with mental illness.
The recent focus of training has included an eight-hour firearms decisional element and eight hours
dedicated to the departments transition from the Glock 9mm to the S&W M&P 9mm handgun.36
Instructional topics cover critical aspects of good firearms training: Skill sets, shooting on the
move, one-handed shooting, malfunction clearance, room-clearing techniques, low-light situations,
etc.
36 Officers competing their probationary period may opt to carry a different firearm, but they must
complete training and a proficiency test with the weapon.
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
73
It was reported by trainers that during recent shotgun refresher training, some officers were
underrelying on the bean bag shotgun as a force option. The department makes the bean bag
shotgun available for use and has installed mounts for these weapons in take-home vehicles.
PERFs review of bean bag use by officers found that they were used in actual incidents from a low
of four to a high of eleven times a year over a five year period with no pattern of increased or
decreased use noted.
As an example of best practices, PERF notes that the San Francisco Police Department, which has
reported an extremely low incidence of officer-involved shootings, has indicated that every patrol
car is deployed with a bean bag shotgun and that the use of these weapons is credited as being an
often ideal less-lethal alternative, especially when confronted by attacking or armed mentally ill
persons. It was noted, however, that the weapon is only deployed when a second officer is available
to provide cover with a firearm. The Little Rock, AR Police Department, a smaller agency but one
that shares certain characteristics with Albuquerque, has also undertaken an effort to reestablish the
bean bag shotgun as a viable less-lethal weapon for officers to consider.
Other than to meet these requalification requirements, APD officers could go almost two years
between firearms related instruction. Training staff report that the department is looking into future
firearm annual in-service training to include more advanced handgun and shotgun training and a
rifle class which would be optional for officers. In the future, shotgun in-service will be mandatory
for all officers.
older M26 models are currently being replaced with the updated X26 model. The department has
budgeted for additional ECWs with the intent of issuing one to each officer. All recruits are
certified to use this weapon in accordance with the departments policy while undergoing academy
training. However, there is no requirement to maintain this certification or to carry an ECW on
74
duty, even if certified. It was reported to PERF that about 20 percent of officers elect not to carry an
ECW. In order to maintain ECW certification, officers must be retrained every two years.
Remedial Training
Supervisory recommendations as well as the recommendations stemming from investigated useofforce cases, irrespective of discipline, can result in officers being directed to attend remedial
training. Remedial training can be on any topic, including use-of-force policy or proficiency
training.
75
there are plans for another class. Headed by the Violent Crimes Sergeant, CIT is primarily intended
as an emergency or initial measure, but can do its own case follow-up, or it can involve the Crisis
Outreach and Support Team (COAST) and/or detectives to take over a situation once stabilized.
The most recent two training classes also involved dispatchers. Additionally, sheriff deputies,
parole and probation officers, DPS and other local department members are participants in this
training.
Recommendations:
1. Objective Reasonableness in Use-of-Force Training. The department should continue to
strengthen its use-of-force training by placing even greater emphasis on the objective
reasonableness of the actions of an officer in a use-of-force situation. The RCM and other
use-of-force continuums/models can continue to serve as useful training guides, but as
acknowledged by FLETC, they tend to over-step their usefulness by suggesting to officers
that a specific action by a person justifies specific reaction(s) by the officer. In reality, the
often instantaneous yet objectively reasonable decision that must be arrived at by the
officer should stem from processing of the information known to the officer, rather than
recall from a memorized matrix.
2. Update Training Guides to Include Use of ECWs. The department should update its use
of the RCM, or any other use-of-force training guide, to include all use-of-force options
available to officers. ECWs/TASERS, bean bag shotguns, and any other approved force
options should be specifically addressed so officers understand the departments official
position on the use of the weapon.
3. Expand the Use of Scenario Training. The department should expand its use of
multilayered, hands-on, scenario training, both at academy and in-service settings. These
are extremely valuable exercises. When recruit and veteran officers are faced with scenarios
integrating the potential for verbal and defensive tactics along with less-lethal and deadly
76
force (and for which successful outcomes could range from calming an individual, to
employing defensive tactics, to confronting deadly force with deadly force), it presents a
different mindset to officers than training in which each scenario evolves into a we are
here to fire our weapons event. This type of training should present the opportunity for
trainees to integrate actions with officer safety tactics, such as positioning and waiting for
backup. Not every situation involves an active shooter. This type of practical scenario
training allows training staff to test trainees under a wider range of circumstances. The
observation that officers may be underutilizing the bean bag shotgun could be a reason to
feature it as a viable option in some training scenarios, thereby increasing officers
familiarity with the weapon.
4. Training Should Be Realistic. Simunition and Shoot/Dont Shoot Training components
should be as realistic as possible. Training with weapons that operate differently from issued
firearms does not afford officers the same opportunity to become familiar and proficient
with the equipment that they will rely upon under stress.
5. Include Recent Actual Events in Training Scenarios. Training issues uncovered in
reallife situations, both from inside and outside the department, should be built into recruit
and in-service training as soon as possible. It was reported that real-life shooting incidents
from which training opportunities could be developed are often not made available for
training for a year or more, because of legal considerations. Even if real-life examples are
adjusted
and presented as fictitious, any opportunity to present training that could save a life should
not be delayed.
6. Field Supervisor and Dispatcher Training Should Stress Prompt Response. The
department should stress in its training for patrol and other operational supervisors as well
as for dispatchers the importance of prompt supervisory arrival at critical situations. When
an officer first arrives at a critical incident scene, he or she is often immersed in an
77
emotionally charged situation with a multitude of tasks. The event can escalate quickly and
completely consume the initial responding officer(s). Arrival of the field supervisor can be a
much needed stabilizing event. An experienced supervisor can have a calming effect and
slow things down. San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne has often commented that in
his experience, the arrival of a sergeant at a critical scene within the first few minutes makes
a huge difference. Dispatchers should be trained and directed by protocol that for all calls in
which there is reference to an armed or dangerous person, a field supervisor is dispatched
and acknowledged when on the scene in command.
7. Train Call Takers in CIT. Training for new call takers and at in-service training should
include how to determine if mental illness is a factor. Currently, dispatch personnel are
instructed in assessing danger and the need to convey critical information to responding
officers. The department should expand the training of those who receive calls from the
public to include identifying the characteristics of mental illness, using a mental illness
checklist to capture information, when applicable, about prior history of violence, reaction
to police response, and the involvement of alcohol or drugs so as to help guide the proper
response and better prepare CIT and other officers for the situation at hand. The
information gathered by call takers and the way it is conveyed can shape the responding
officers state of mind. CIT training geared to call takers/dispatchers can make them a more
valuable resource to CIT and patrol officers alike.
8. Seek Out Causes for Recruit Failures. When a recruit fails the academy for poor decision
making involving the use of force, trainers should work with recruiters and background
investigators to determine if there was anything in the recruits background that might have
predicted a problem. Just as trainers currently seek to determine if the reason for a recruits
failure could have stemmed from a flaw in training or if an identified flaw impacted an
entire class this could help keep recruiters and background investigators alerted to
potential problem areas in the future.
78
79
10. Provide Additional Training for Recruits and Officers in De-escalation Skills.
Additional instruction in de-escalation techniques should be presented to officers at the
entry level and at in-service training. Some officers are naturally competent in this area.
Others, at times, can fail to recognize the value of turning around an escalating situation. All
too often, situations that could be resolved without arrest or without the use of force to
effect an arrest escalate unnecessarily because tempers and emotions are not calmed early
on. Clearly, there are times when a persons conduct, demeanor, and actions are such that an
arrest is necessary, but there are also many opportunities in which officers who are adept at
calming tempers and emotions can deescalate a situation rather than allowing it to escalate.
These skills should be regularly reinforced though classroom instruction and practical
exercises during in-service training.
11. Importance of Trainers and Field Training Officers. Trainers and field training officers
have the opportunity to convince recruits that the intent of the departments policies are
two-fold: to guide them in their actions to protect the public and themselves, and also to
protect themselves from making unsound judgments that could lead to civil and criminal
prosecution. Prior to the start of every academy and FTO period, the police chief should
meet with his command staff and these trainers and FTOs to discuss the importance of these
expectations and to convey his trust in them to properly prepare these recruits who represent
the future of the department.
12. Debrief Field Training Officers. The Chief and his training staff should meet with FTOs
as a group at the end of their time with recruits specifically to discuss their impressions of
the recruits use-of-force decision making readiness. There are innumerable opportunities
for an FTO to document, report, and remedy problems with a particular recruit during the
FTO period. But their collective impressions as to a class of recruits level of confidence
and ability to apply effective communications skills, de-escalation techniques, defensive
tactics, and appropriate use of force in actual situations is a valuable resource not to be
80
overlooked. This forum would provide better insight to training staff as to the strengths of
specific blocks of instruction and where there is opportunity for enhancement.
13. Expand CIT training and the Frequency of In-Service Training in Dealing with People
with Mental Illness. CIT-certifying 25 percent of its patrol strength is an important and
impressive accomplishment for the Albuquerque Police Department. But it should continue
to expand CIT training, and the in-service training curriculum should include more frequent
refresher instruction in dealing with persons with mental illness. A review of the
departments officer-involved shooting incidents from 2006-2010 finds that nearly 30
percent of the individuals who posed a sufficient threat that officers felt compelled to
respond with the use of deadly force had a prior history of mental illness. Police are also
occasionally faced with suicide by cop situations in which they feel they have no choice
but to protect themselves and others. In 2010, the department documented 28 calls for
service in which the caller used words alerting the call taker to the possibility of a
suicideby-cop intention. In all of these situations, officers who could be confronted by
unstable and dangerous persons should be prepared through training and regular
reinforcement to deal with such persons and the threats they may pose. Training for all
officers in identifying and handling mentally ill persons should be more frequent than the
current requirement. A short refresher could be presented annually in the form of a roll-call
training video and handout.
14. Changes in Training Should Be Endorsed by the Chief. Any significant change in the
departments policy or training that impacts existing officers should be explained by the
Chief of Police. Police officers rely on training for survival. Understandably, change is not
always easily accepted or understood. Rather than risk misperception about why changes
have been directed, especially in sensitive topics such as use of force training, the Chief
should attend roll calls to introduce the change. This demonstrates both the importance of
the change and the reason for it.
81
15. Require Officer Certification in the Use of Approved Weapons. Entry level and
inservice training should include instruction in the use of and practice with the force
options available to patrol officers. The department requires officers to train with issued
equipment (handguns, chemical spray, baton, etc.). However, officers who prefer not to
carry the departments issued ECW or a shotgun are not required to train and qualify with
these weapons. Each officer should regularly undergo familiarity and proficiency training
with these departmentally approved/issued weapons. The department should require officers
to be trained and certified in its use (and retrained and recertified, as required). The
department should proceed to make shotgun qualification a required component of annual
firearms qualification.
16. All Patrol Officers Should Carry ECWs. The department should continue with its goal to
train and provide every uniformed field officer with a personally issued ECW, and officers
should required to carry them on duty. Proper use of these less-lethal weapons can in some
circumstances be a viable option for an officer faced with a deadly force decision. Clearly,
EWCs cannot properly safeguard officers from every threat of serious bodily harm or death,
but in those instances when the use of an ECW is viable and an officer does not employ
deadly force, a life is less threatened. Review of ECW use by APD officers over five recent
years shows that department-wide, the weapon was used on average once every 64
hours. There is no accurate way to determine how many, if any, of the departments ECW
uses stopped a situation from escalating to a deadly force incident. But if it was only one, it
could not have taken place if that officer had chosen to forego certification and carrying of
an ECW.
17. Adopt New Guidelines for ECW Use. The department should adopt PERFs 2011
Electronic Control Weapon Guidelines. PERFs work in this area, with support from the
U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS
Office), has been highly regarded since it began in 2005. The 2011 guidelines are a revision
of similar guidelines that were issued by PERF/COPS in 2005, and which were widely
82
adopted in the field. The new guidelines are attached for the departments consideration
with regard to both policy and training.
Attachment # 1
California Commission on POST Patrol Officer Psychological Screening Dimensions
83
84
Inability to recognize how ones own emotions/behaviors affect situations and others Makes
hasty, biased judgments based on physical appearance, race, gender, or other group membership
characteristics
Exhibits stage fright when asked to speak in front of community groups
DIMENSION 7: EMOTIONAL REGULATION AND STRESS TOLERANCE
This involves the ability to maintain composure and stay in control, particularly during
lifethreatening, timecritical events and other stressful situations. It includes taking the negative
aspects of the job in stride and maintaining n even temperament, as well as accepting criticism
rather than becoming overly defensive or allowing it to hamper job performance.
It includes:
Acceptance/ownership of personal limitations and mistakes
Ability to perform under difficult, threatening situations
Maintaining positive self image under adverse circumstances
Maintaining even-tempered composure and demeanor
Proper use of force
Positive Behaviors:
Accepts responsibility for actions and mistakes; does not routinely make excuses or blame others
for own shortcomings.
Even tempered
Uses constructive criticism to improve performance
Makes timely, responsible decisions and actions in dangerous/crisis situations
Can perform in the face of personal threat, where people are capable of life-threatening violence
Stays calm in the face of verbal abuse from others
Demonstrates emotional resilience by bouncing back from negative situations
Accepts that system injustices and inequities are beyond their control, rather than letting them
impact their emotional state and job performance
85
Proper escalation and de-escalation of force; using force only when necessary, and then just the
amount needed to apprehend suspect, search the property or residence, etc.
Handles the negative aspects of the job relatively well, without extreme negativity/cynicism
Fails to deescalate at conclusion of pursuit
Curbs personal aversions (e.g., child molesters) from interfering with professional job
performance
Counterproductive Behaviors:
Never acknowledges or admits to shortcomings or mistakes
Experiences performance-impairing mood swings
Becomes excessively defensive or otherwise overreacts when challenged or criticized
Consistently blames others (or circumstances) for mistakes made
Worries excessively and enters into new situations with considerable apprehension
Overly suspicious and distrusting in dealing with others
Denies impact of stress-inducing incidents
Commonly behaves with hostility and anger
Suffers reactions to job stress, both near-term (anxiety, worry) and long-term (e.g., physical
symptoms, burnout, substance abuse).
Overly self-critical of ones job performance
Is always rightnot open to others ideas, suggestions, etc.
Argues at the drop of a hat
Badmouths the agency and associated organizations
Unable to cope with stress; worries excessively or suffers other signs of anxiety
Unnecessarily confrontational and aggressive
Comes unglued, freezes, or otherwise performs ineffectively when feeling overloaded or
stressed
Antagonistic toward fellow officers; e.g., uses abusive, condescending language; disrespectful
Disrupts/undermines authority (fails to successfully carry out directives; shows signs of contempt
by eye rolling, excessive exhaling, etc.)
Excessive, unrestrained use of force
Police Executive Research Forum
Washington, DC June
23, 2011
86
Allows personal problems and stressors to bleed into behavior on the job
87