For years, officers have trained by shooting at stationary targets. A big step was popup targets as officers moved through training buildings. Today training can be more realistic.

The Polk County Sheriff’s office spends considerable time training officers. Just before the Thanksgiving holiday the department added a tool to improve that training. Imagine a room with a wall size video screen. Like a videogame on steroids, videotaped actors move through scenarios, responding or not to a live trainee’s commands and weapon fire.

You’re a deputy with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. You’ve standing in front of a mini-van as a father explains why he has pulled to the side of the road. He’s upset, but attempting to explain his predicament. A teen sits fidgeting in the front seat. Younger children in the back seat are yelling at the teen. You’re watching inside the van as you glance back at the father. His hands are down at his side, palms open and facing you. The children are agitated. You start to step toward the minivan’s passenger side as the teen opens the door. You shout for him to stay seated. He continues opening the door.

You see his hand come up. Is that a smile? Is he angry? Does he have a gun? You have less time than it takes to read this sentence to decide. Decide while his father is yelling. Decide while children are jumping in the back seat. Decide while the teen continues out of the car.

One-third of a second has passed. You take too long to decide. You’re shot and killed.

In the facility, officers use standard weapons and tools outfitted with sensors instead of bullets. Cameras track officers as they work through real-life, real-time scenarios. Instructors use interactive media to alter the scenarios to respond to the skill level of the trainee. After the training scene is over, instructors can replay the video and show officers where they did well, and where they could improve.

Running though a scenario quickly starts to feel real. The actors fall when shot. They shoot back when they’re missed or only wounded. Trainees don’t feel the return shots, but the video turns red if the officer would have been killed.

Lieutenant Rick Wright is the training supervisor at PCSO Burnham McCall Training Center, “We are the first in this area to bring this simulated training to use.”

Wright points out how little an officer know when responding to a call. They know the location and a very brief description such as “shooting” or domestic disturbance. “Deputies don’t really know what they’re getting into,” Wright says. He says the department uses the video facility to train officers to make informed situation-based decisions.

Scenarios are about two minutes long with branching options that allow a single scenario to have various outcomes. The videos are guided. An officer can’t choose to open a door or not. Though some scenarios seem to start slow, action happens lightening quick.

Trainer Sgt Larry Traylor, points out that the methods is realistic. “In these scenarios, we’re training action and reaction all at real-life speed.” Wright says the scenarios are short for a good reason, “We’re focusing on the decision-making process.”

In addition to the realistic training, Wright finds the system cost effective, “It was half the cost of most simulators on the market.” He added that the department will see significant savings, “A case of 1000 rounds (of ammunition) is approximated $260. A case of the CO2 cartridges (to power the training weapons) is $340.“ A quick bit of math, and Wright figured the Sherriff’s Office gets around 45,000 rounds out of that CO2 case.

Wright says the training isn’t only for new officers. Veteran deputies spend time in the facility. “You can never get enough training,” says Wright. He expanded on the cost effective aspect of the facility, “We need just one instructor in here versus seven in an old-fashion simulation training. Weather is also a big factor. We can now operate during inclement weather.”

Lt. Rick Wright prepares to fire as Sgt. Larry Traylor manages the training scenario.

That’s because of the interactive nature of the training facility. An instructor sits at a computer behind the trainee. He watches and listens and can alter the direction of the scenario based on the responses of the trainee. If the deputy uses the proper language to handle an explosive situation, the instructor can show the video actor calming down. Improperly handle the scene, and the actor gets belligerent and the situation escalates.

Wright explains that they focus on two major training procedures: analytic and intuitive. Classrooms are big on giving analytic training – ask the right questions and learn the right answers. “We train the intuitive thought process through this training,” Wright says of the facility, “It paints a cognitive map in the deputy’s mind. In the field the deputy now has an idea in his mind what he should do.”

The training facility has proved very popular with the deputies. “I haven’t heard one negative comment. Once they start they don’t want to stop,” Wright said.

With over 150 scenarios, each with numerous branching options, the facility offers something new each time a trainee use it. If one were to run through each scenario, Wright is prepared, “We automatically receive video updates at no cost.”

The department can also build scenarios using Polk County locations and actors. Using simple built-in tools, Sheriff’s Office video is imported, potential targets are identified, and branching options programmed. Wright says they have already constructed a simple scenario of the department shooting range.

Training isn’t all video and shooting though. Instructors can display department policies, case law, constitutional amendments, and outside video and photos to help a deputy understand the particulars of a scenario.

One aspect of the training that Wright highlights is the video of the trainee during training. An unobtrusive camera records the trainee and the screen. After the scenario, the instructor can show the trainee where he or she performed well or missed an important clue.

“We’re trying to teach them to see beyond the obvious. You get that thorough experience and that is what this (facility) does,” says Wright.

The department’s training isn’t the cutting edge of the technology. The next step is 3D to allow a trainee to step into the middle of scenarios. It adds another level of realism to the training, “It is just like me and you looking at each other,“ Sgt Traylor says. He did the yeoman’s work to find the present system and has studied the new 3D equipment. He pointed out that the department’s current system can be easily upgraded when the 3D projector is released from the manufacturer.

Lt. Wright can’t wait, “3D is going to open a plethora of training opportunities.”

“If you get blood at Lakeland Regional Medical Center after 7 a.m. Monday, it won’t be coming from BloodNet USA. LRMC’s blood and blood products, like platelets or plasma, will come instead from Florida Blood Services, which officially starts providing LRMC’s blood supplies that day. The two signed a contract three months ago and have spent the time since then finalizing arrangements.” — LRMC Taps Into New Supply of Blood

“Publix Super Markets has long stressed its customer service and cleanliness, but with rising food and gas costs it’s now courting a lower-priced image. The Lakeland-based grocery chain has started a program of deep discounts on certain staple items, starting with milk and soon expanding to other products, company spokeswoman Shannon Patten said.” — Publix Grocery Bill May Be Less

“Orlando officials say they have little choice but to raise property taxes because city government is run as efficiently as possible. But records show that the Orlando Police Department — with a $111 million budget that amounts to nearly a third of the city’s general spending — has seen its overtime pay nearly triple in the past four years as the city deals with a wave of violent crime.” — Overtime could tax Orlando Police budget to tune of $4 million

Bonus:

“With John McCain likely only days from announcing his running mate, the chances of his choosing Florida Gov. Charlie Crist took three hits this week: a poll, a controversy over campaign contributions and an important newspaper non-endorsement. Recent speculation about Crist has put him in the lower tier of potential running mates and focused more on former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.” — Governor May Have Faded As VP Choice

Yes – that headline says April 15. Your tax forms must be in the mail by midnight tonight.

Apopka Cops say that the house being used for a reality show was once used to broadcast live sex acts for an adult entertainment Web site. Can’t you imagine the idiots behind this? “Hey, we got this house sitting here – we need to use it to get rich and famous!”

In Haines City, work on the North Sixth Street streetscaping project has been postponed because of paperwork requested by Florida’s Department of Community Affairs. Meanwhile in Winter Haven, Third Street between Avenue A Southwest and Avenue E Northwest is undergoing a face lift as part of that city’s continuing effort to improve the downtown. The work is expected to take the rest of the year.

Mulberry Police Deputy Chief Jody Beaudry was arrested Monday on charges of sexual battery and engaging in unlawful sexual activity with a minor. FDLE investigators say in 2004, Beaudry threatened to revoke a 16 year old girl’s probation if she did not have sex with him. Sounds like rape to me.

A Ledger editorial notes the Bush Administration’s terrible EPA record.

Compared to 2007, Sun ‘n Fun President John Burton said that daily attendance during the week was down 5 percent or 6 percent each day for the first four days of the six-day event. There was no dropoff in deaths surrounding the event.

Media General’s Florida Communications Group is offering voluntary buyouts to about half its 1,326 employees, including those with The Tampa Tribune and WFLA, News Channel 8. They are trying to reduce staff and other costs in a difficult economic environment in the Tampa Bay area, said John Schueler, president of Florida Communications Group, which oversees the operation of The Tribune, WFLA, TBO.com and other Florida media outlets.

The book The Land is about the son of a prosperous landowner and a former slave whose white father raises him openly in post-Civil War Georgia. The book includes use of the N-word. After a parent’s complaint, a committee of school administrators, parents and teachers from Turner Elementary School in northeast Hillsborough County said The Land by Mildred Taylor was “above the maturity level of elementary students” and will donate the book to a middle school, school officials said Monday.

Tampa Tribune Editorial: In scoring and hosting championship games, Tampa has been outstanding. But Orlando is investing a billion dollars in sporting venues and other facilities, and are on the way to building commuter rail. Tampa needs to stay ahead of Orlando.

That’s it for now. Feel free to go finish your taxes.

… 10 Hillsborough County intersections will get red light cameras that supporters say save lives and detractors claim cause more – not fewer – accidents.

Red light cameras cause about as many crashes as red lights. Neither are the reason for accidents. Selfish, careless, negligent, thoughtless, self-centered, inconsiderate, and inattentive drivers are to blame for wrecks.

Once these cameras are installed, you better look out. RLCs won’t change the habits of these people right away. They will still be driving on your streets while on the phone, applying makeup, reading the newspaper, and texting their peeps. And the odds are they will be right behind you when you slow quickly for a yellow light (which is what you are supposed to do). So there will be a few fender benders.

But not to fear. It costs a lot less to fix the rear of your vehicle than the front of it. And after just a couple of months (and plenty of front-end body work), those selfish drivers will realize that they should maybe pay a bit more attention to the road. All will be well in no time.

We applaud the decision of your Hillsborough County Commissioners.

Now let’s be clear here. Street cops have to be alert to many more variables than jail cops. But I don’t think you can say that those jail cops have an easy job, either. Still, I’m beginning to feel very foolish for simply suggesting we wait for all the facts.

Ever since the worldwide outrage toward the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for tossing a paraplegic from his wheelchair, the law enforcement agency has been inundated with phone calls from people who claim they too were treated abusively during their stay in the hoosegow. A handful of those have found video that supposedly backs up their story, and have been featured in your local news outlets.

• While under arrest for grand theft and drug related offenses Tammy Lynn Mojica says Deputy Marshall-Jones roughed her up in a jail bathroom Jan. 10. HCSO says Mojica tried to swallow some drugs, and the deputy was simply trying to get the evidence.
• Charlana Irving was busted for DUI, and says a deputy broke her arm while at Orient Road. HCSO says detention deputy Milton Fassett had to physically remove Irving from a cell after repeated attempts to calm her verbally failed.
• In November of 2006, Marcella Pourmoghani was booked for driving on a suspended license, which was a violation of probation stemming from a previous DUI arrest. She says a detention deputy grabbed her by the hair and yanked her out of a chair, and punched her repeatedly with a closed fist. HCSO says Pourmoghani was being disruptive during the booking process and continued causing problems after “being counseled several times,” and that Pourmoghani grabbed the deputy’s leg, and that the deputy had to use force.

Because of all of that, the HCSO is “looking at ways to better train deputies.” But the accusations keep on coming.

The latest is another handicapped man who was also dumped from his wheelchair. But in this incident, HCSO says the dumping was justified, because the guy threw a crack pipe at deputies. Besides, they say, this guy shot someone earlier, so “the use of force was justified…”

It is becoming clear that the original incident was simply the tip of the iceberg. In that first video, remember looking at the reactions (or really, the lack of any reaction) by the nearby deputies? That suggests that this kind of thing goes on every single day. Prisoners are treated as the scum of the earth, whether they are guilty or innocent.

And look at the official responses for each of the above incidents. Basically, “the use of force was justified,” “the use of force was justified,” “the use of force was justified,” and “the use of force was justified.” Mostly against drunks and drug users.

By using that excuse every time, and with folks like myself giving law enforcement the benefit of the doubt, it could very well be that these institutions think they can get away with murder. In fact, in the hands of these jailers, it’s not too surprising that some folks have died in there.

Of course it’s not just here in Hillsborough County. Polk County jailers have similar problems. There are deaths in jails all over the country.

But who is upset? Not many. Complaints have been made against law enforcement, but they are dismissed with “appropriate use of force” arguments. Maybe it’s because they are just (alleged) criminals. People think “even if they are innocent of this charge, they probably deserved it.” And video cameras don’t show everything. So with not much proof, media shrug their shoulders, and just move on to another story. Steve Otto ALMOST admits it, and says the allegations are “easy to dismiss”:

I’ve been almost as guilty. Not too many days go by I don’t get an envelope stuffed with pages of handwritten material from an inmate in Hillsborough County. The pages are filled with detailed references to that inmate’s experiences in jail, along with the news that he has been unfairly charged.

When I get these I go back and check the records and usually find that the writer has been locked up for multiple reasons and generally for a string of violations.

I received one this week from an inmate who wrote that he is diabetic and went on to describe how his treatments have been messed up in jail, and he identified correctional workers and how they had abused him.

These are letters that are easy to dismiss, or at best taken to an editor to deal with it or not.

But when evidence is overwhelming, the editorial boards are aghast. St. Pete Times: Punish Now Severely. Tampa Tribune: casual cruelty is an outrage.

Which brings me to another question. If the deputies are guilty of just standing around doing nothing while inmates are treated as punching bags, what are we to say about the media?