by Rebecca Venis
As police officers are constantly finding themselves in life-threatening situations, where they must act instantly and decisively to protect themselves and civilians alike, the need for more effective and safer tools for law enforcement is all too apparent.
The City of Reno, Nev., will conduct the Regional Public Safety Training Center mobile workshop allowing delegates of the Congress of Cities and Exposition in Reno, Dec. 5-9, an opportunity to see first-hand how a regional approach to training has centralized resources, reduced duplication of efforts and cut costs. It will be held in the Regional Public Safety Training Center (RPSTC).
Participants will receive a complete tour of the RPSTC campus including a tour of the nationally recognized Regional Emergency Communications Center and the Regional Emergency Operations Center.
During the workshop, delegates will be able to join panelists Wednesday, Dec. 6, 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., or Friday, Dec. 8, 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., to experience how the transition from a single agency, police-managed dispatch center to a stand-alone city department serves the emergency communications needs for all of northern Nevada, while taking in more than 500,000 calls annually.
Firefighters and police officers will demonstrate emergency vehicle operation and fire suppression training. Each delegate will have an opportunity for a hands-on demonstration of the capabilities of equipment such as the TASER, a device that fires electric darts to incapacitate a person temporarily.
As the Reno Police Department provides law enforcement services to a population of more than 200,000, the organization decided several years ago to seek alternative force systems for daily use by police officers. The department began by researching a variety of non-lethal force delivery systems that could be readily applied in crowded situations and act as an alternative to deadly force in high-pressure situations.
The department?s research and preliminary trials with the non-lethal TASER system uncovered some encouraging results. It found that, in many incidents, the device had spared a human life from the use of deadly force. Additionally, it became apparent that, by giving law enforcement officers access to non-lethal tools like the TASER, the problem of post-traumatic stress in officers resulting from use of deadly force was diminished.
Indeed, non-lethal devices are now used by thousands of law enforcement agencies nationwide. At the Reno Police Department, each new officer is now issued a TASER.
Delegates will also learn about how the Reno Police Department and the Reno Fire Department joined with the Sparks Police and Fire Departments, Washoe County Sheriff?s Office, Nevada Division of Forestry and Truckee Meadows Community College as partnering agencies in the RPSTC.
Details: For more information on mobile workshops and to register for the conference online, visit the Congress of Cities website.
Rebecca Venis is the public relations manager for the Bauserman Group, a Reno-based public relations firm.