VSU hosts law officer training

Published 9:30 am Monday, January 27, 2020

VALDOSTA — The Center for Applied Social Sciences at Valdosta State University presents “Understanding and Managing Law Enforcement Temporal Arrest-Related Deaths,” 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Jan. 29-30, in the University Center Magnolia Room.

“This 16-hour professional training seminar is ideal for law-enforcement officers, administrators, instructors and investigators, as well as corrections officers, emergency-response personnel, medical examiners and coroners, risk managers and attorneys,” university officials said. 

Tuition is free of charge.

“While rare in occurrence, law-enforcement temporal arrest-related deaths involve numerous and complex issues, including use of force options and restraint equipment, medical and mental health issues, determination of causes and manners of death, and various legal issues,” according to a course description. “This seminar provides an assessment of arrest-related death incidents involving use of force options, prone restraint, weight force, various restraint devices, conducted energy weapons and other intermediate weapons and liability issues involving multiple-officer response.

“Law-enforcement response to the mentally impaired and those under the influence of chemical substances, including excited delirium syndrome based on the current scientific research, are discussed. Common liability issues and the use of force criteria applied by the courts are addressed, as well as examining policy and training issues, assessing officer decision making/field applications, and applicable supervisory issues. 

“Participants will gain new knowledge and skills in order to return to their agency to update policy and training, improve field response, and enhance administrative review of the incident.” 

Instructors are Darrell Ross and Michael Brave, university officials said.

Ross is head of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminal Justice and director of the Center for Applied Social Sciences at VSU. He has worked in corrections and probation and has taught classes in defensive tactics, pressure point control tactics, and the use of force nationally and internationally. 

He regularly provides consulting services and expert witness testimony on the use of force and arrest-related / custodial deaths in civil and criminal courts, university officials said.

Brave is an attorney, a sworn police officer and an International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training national certified and international certified instructor. His experience includes a wide range of comprehensive law-enforcement risk / liability and litigation management services. 

He has presented on force options and other subjects on a global scale. He routinely provides expert witness testimony on the police use of force and temporal death incidents, university officials said.

Email VSU Police Department Sgt. Michael Browning at mrbrowning@valdosta.edu to register.