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A larger problem is the mindset of many** officers who feel that guns are merely an unavoidable evil that is part of their job. They dread qualifying and see it as unnecessary and burdensome. They don't want to practice more, and wouldn't practice more if the ammo/range fees were free and they got to practice while on the time clock.
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Very true, John. Cops come from all walks of life, with as many varied interests. Some are into football, some into golf, and only coincidentally, some are into guns.
When you think of a cop, you usually think of two things: A badge and a gun. The truth is, however, firearm skills are far from the top of his list of necessary skills. Probably the most important skills any cop can have are communication skills, both verbal and written.
The vast majority of LEO's will never fire their weapons at a human target during their careers, but the gravity of the situation when it does occur demands that they be more than merely proficient.
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What would some real answers, to encourage or demand higher skill levels from LEO's?
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Well, simply banging away at paper, in stage after stage for hours, won't do it. I'm thinking the old KISMIF principle, i.e., Keep It Simple, Make It Fun. By nature, cops are usually competitive sorts, so taking advantage of that is a start.
Now we all know that the state mandated courses are about as much fun as watching paint dry, so adding a few things to make it fun would help. Our previous RO (now retired
) dreamed up all sorts of stuff, including pin & plate shoots and variations of a dueling tree, all competing for the prestigious "SPD Top Gun" award, . He aways made sure that there were numerous categories, with low cost plaques or trophies for each, so that a lot of guys went home with awards and smiles.
It made a difference. Guys spent more time shooting (because they wanted to; not because they had to) and scores came up.
Tony, our ret. RO, was a long time gun enthusiast and shooter, so this all came naturally to him, and his enthusiasm spilled over to others. Our present range officers simply aren't into it. For them, it's just another duty, and that, too, carries across. Now in fairness to them, the dept. has cut qualification time down to 4 hours (budget cuts), and it's a mad rush just to get through it, so there's little time for "fun".
Even so, I'm convinced that a department's RO's can make a world of difference if he can just add a fun factor.