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Commissioners report on police training, praise VR and CRIT trainer program
Summary
Commissioners said a train-the-trainer Crisis Intervention Team session, bias training and virtual-reality simulations gave them new perspective on officers' split-second decision-making; the commission urged that some training be more widely required and discussed offering a community version.
Commissioners who attended an April 21 police training session told the April 22 meeting they found the experience informative and urged expanding some modules beyond volunteers.
Chair Carter and multiple commissioners said the day included slide presentations, scenario simulations and virtual-reality exercises that helped participants understand the pace and complexity of officer decision-making. Several commissioners described the virtual reality as “very effective” for appreciating speed of decisions and said the presentations opened their eyes to officer responsibilities and to training content on bias.
Chief Anderson explained the specific train-the-trainer design: the department issued an internal call for volunteers to become Crisis Intervention Team (CIT/CRIT) trainers, received roughly a dozen interested officers, and trained eight or nine of them as trainers who will then train the rest of the agency. Chief Anderson said the process is competitive and intentional because not every officer is suited to be a trainer; volunteers are selected for aptitude and willingness to teach.
Commissioners suggested that some classes—particularly bias- and crisis-intervention modules—might be made mandatory rather than optional. Commissioner comments emphasized that admitting personal bias and seeing scenarios firsthand were valuable parts of the experience.
Commissioners and the chief also discussed creating a citizen-oriented training opportunity: several commissioners proposed holding a community training session so residents could experience simulations and better understand officer decision-making. Chief Anderson said the department already runs a community police academy and can help plan a fall public training or a special event to include community members.
The department and commissioners agreed to continue sharing slides and training materials; one commissioner asked for the CRIT slides that had not been shown during a presentation. Commissioners indicated they would provide feedback on training content to APD.
