Tactical Decision Making

Tactical Decision Making

Domestics are volatile, dangerous, and frustrating. Screaming and shattering glass was about all that we had to go on while en route to the call — limited information was par for the course. The white clapboard triple-decker apartment building was like three...
Into The Vortex: One Rule For Avoiding A Tactical Faux Pas

Into The Vortex: One Rule For Avoiding A Tactical Faux Pas

By the time I realized what was happening, I had already been hit by several bullets. Though they took me completely by surprise, I soon realized my colossal mistake in the seconds that followed. But by that time, it was too late. After responding to a call for a...
Life In The Fishbowl: How To Avoid An Ambush And Stay Alive

Life In The Fishbowl: How To Avoid An Ambush And Stay Alive

The introduction of the MDT¹ into the cruiser made officers on the road more autonomous. We could check licenses, run registrations, read calls for service, see pending calls, use maps, type reports, and play Spider Solitaire. It also keeps officers out on the road...
Anticipation And The Thing About Surprises

Anticipation And The Thing About Surprises

When it comes to tactics, it’s better to be disappointed than surprised. I don’t know about you, but I hate surprises. I don’t like surprise parties, surprise bills, surprise car repairs, surprise sinkholes in the driveway, or … I’ll stop there because I’m...
For The Want Of A Horseshoe Nail

For The Want Of A Horseshoe Nail

Okay, so I didn’t actually need a horseshoe nail, but I did need a flashlight battery, which is pretty much the same thing. One of the things about police work that I’ve both loved and hated was that I never knew what would happen at any given moment on any given...