THE QUICK FIX

Is it ground hog day? Remember the LA Riots in 1992 or the Ferguson Riots in 2014? How about Baltimore 2016? Here we go again. While each of these incidents were unique in their own way and law enforcement itself may have been divided on whether or not the use of force in these incidents were valid, the one (1) thing about Minneapolis is there is almost complete agreement the force used by Derek Chauvin and the lack of intervention by the other officers on scene showed a complete disregard for George Floyd’s life leading directly to his death. Law enforcement and the general public almost unanimously agree.

What did we learn from the previous incidents? Apparently very little. Once again we have politicians and others coming out with a lot of rhetoric and pointing to the profession of policing as the problem. I have news for you the law enforcement profession isn’t the problem. Law enforcement in the United States is one of if not the most professional in the world and don’t start trying to compare us to other countries. The United States is a huge country and it is extremely diverse and not just diverse in race, but in culture as well. The different parts of our great country are extremely diverse in our own U.S. culture. The east coast is different than the west coast. The southern culture is different than northern culture. The northwest is different than the southwest. I hope you get the point.

Do we have a race problem? You bet we do. But don’t blame law enforcement. Our politicians and a lot of other people want the answer to be an easy one and saying if departments implement eight (8) policies #8can’twait all of this will go away. Guess what? It won’t. At least not by implementing these policies. While I agree, some of these suggestions are good for agencies others won’t change a thing and will in fact cause more excessive force claims and put officers’ lives at risk. 

It is amazing we are even discussing the banning carotid hold considering a carotid hold wasn’t even used in the Minneapolis case; at least not one (1) I am familiar with and I have been an arrest and control/ground control tactics instructor for over 20+ years with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Kodokan Judo. As a matter of fact I have never seen or heard of the technique (placing your knee or shin across someone’s neck) if you want to call it that, used by Derek Chauvin taught to law enforcement. To be clear, in all of the training I have instructed or attended it has been stressed to never place your knee or shin on someone’s neck. 

Carotid holds are used every day throughout the world in Judo/Jiu Jitsu gyms and in competitions with no deaths or serious injuries. As a matter of fact Canada conducted a thorough study of use of force and their effectiveness by the Canadian Police Research Centre and they determined “This report finds that, while no restraint methodology is completely risk free, there is not medical reason to routinely expect grievous bodily harm or death following the correct application of the vascular neck restraint in the general population by professional police officers with standardized training and technique (page 76TR - 01 – 2007, National Study On Neck Restraint In Policing Date: 2007 - January ).”  This study utilized an evidence based approach which I cannot confirm about the #8can’twait claims.

What would you like the officer to do when strikes and pain compliance doesn’t work? Just keep swinging away I guess. It appears we would rather do away with a scientifically researched tool, which is quick, effective, and proven to lead to less officer and suspect injuries for political expediency and appeasement.

Next let’s take a brief look at the use of force continuum, which has not been used for years. This is very rigid and does not relate to the fluidity or ever changing dynamics of a use of force situation. I firmly believe force continuum models lead to accusations of excessive use of force. First of all every use of force is unique and it cannot and should not be judged by a rigid standard, rather each use of force should be judged by what is objectively reasonable per the Supreme Court ruling in Graham v. Conner.

For instance if there is an officer who is 5’06” and 130 lbs. facing a suspect who is 6’04” and 250 lbs., taking up a fighting stance and threatening to kick the officer’s ass, wouldn’t it be reasonable for the officer to utilize an electronic control device to take the suspect into custody. Now would you expect the same if the size disparity were reversed? No you wouldn’t and the public would be appalled.

Remember equal does not always mean fair or right. There is a reason force continuum’s began to wither away in law enforcement in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. They were ineffective, rigid and in my opinion led to many excessive force lawsuits because they boxed officers into “if this, then that” never allowing for an officer to utilize their expertise and not taking into account the fluidity of uses of force.

I would suggest most excessive force claims occur, because the officer did not use the amount of force needed to begin with out of the fear created by administrators and politicians, therefore leading to a more prolonged incident which in turn leads to excessive force. Most of the incidents of excessive force aren’t because cops are awful, sadistic people, it is because they do not have the training or skills to take care of the issue at hand and by the end of the use of force they feel like they are fighting for their lives, which creates a situation where they are unable to perceive the lack of resistance. Therefore when the resistance ends the excessive force begins.

You want to make some changes to law enforcement? Quit allowing police departments to lower their hiring standards just to fill positions, demand mandatory fitness standards, demand certain levels of training when it comes to arrest and control tactics, quit cutting training budgets and instead invest in truly in depth arrest and control training. Get rid of BAD cops period. Change your hiring practices and the culture of how we treat new officers. These new officers aren’t eighteen (18) year old military recruits, most are twenty-six (26)/twenty-seven (27) year old adults coming from the adult world. Treat your recruits like they are less than those around them and I firmly believe when they are put in the position of power they will seize it and treat the public the same way. We can grow them and their resilience in other ways instead of belittling them.

Recruit from all different walks of life and culture. Go out in our communities and find those people who work in different professions, who didn’t realize law enforcement is for them. Each one of us should be on the lookout for the next great officer, it may be the person behind the counter at the coffee shop, or the IT gal you just met; maybe it’s your kid’s teacher. Mentor those looking at this profession and help them succeed.

Law enforcement may be the most important profession in our country especially right now. It is a noble and honorable profession and as leaders we have to stress this to our people and to the public.

So do we have a race problem in this country yes we do, but it is not one created by law enforcement. It is one created and perpetuated by certain politicians. Guess what it isn’t going to change any time soon. Politicians would rather talk about defunding law enforcement in the cities that need police the most and talk about the quick fix #8can’twait, making decisions about a profession they know nothing about, but make them look like they are doing something for the activists. It is nothing more than white noise to drown out their failures.   They want the flashy hashtag of the day, so they can hang their hat on the “Quick Fix” come election time.

Quit shouting down those who don’t view things the way you do and listen, really listen to what they have to say and this goes for all sides of the issues. We are in more need of diversity of ideas now more than ever. Discourse is great, but we have to be working towards real solutions. Our country is divided now more than ever. Whenever anyone tries to move towards the middle ground they are eviscerated by left and the right. We act as if there can be no cooperation or collaboration from those who disagree with one another and as long as we keep this divide we will find no peace.

Until we as a country sit down and discuss the socioeconomic and educational disparities in these marginalized communities, and start truly working towards real solutions instead of catchy hashtags, three (3) to five (5) years from now we will be right back where we are today with riots, cities burning and once again police officers will be the political football caught in the middle.

Author: Tracy Basterrechea is a twenty-four (24) year law enforcement officer, a police use of force instructor, and an instructor for Gulla’s Arrestling. He also holds a Blackbelts in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Kodokan Judo, as well as an associate instructor in Jeet Kune Do/Filipino Kali. Tracy is involved in a movement to make Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and or Police Judo mandatory for police officers.