Calibre Press

We repeatedly talk about speed as a key element to consider when discussing, evaluating and training for force encounters; how quickly someone can pivot to face or flee from an officer, how fast a suspect can close in on an officer after deciding to attack, the time it takes for an officer to perceive and react to a threat, how quickly a suspect can fire a gun. The impact of talking about it, though, pales in comparison to actually seeing dead... Full Article »

Want to see the ultimate in professionalism? Watch this impressive officer calmly navigate his way through a traffic stop in the midst of a vitriolic barrage of racist, threatening accusations spewed by a woman stopped for a cell phone violation. Listen for her proud declaration that she’s a teacher after repeatedly addressing the officer as a “murdered.” Wow. If she’s really a teacher, weep for the future. A question for you. After yo... Full Article »

Last month, 22-year-old Anthony Alvarez was shot by a Chicago police officer after several officers approached him and he fled, for the second time in two days. This sparked a foot pursuit. It was apparent that Alvarez had a gun and as one of the pursing officers closed in on him and ordered him to drop the weapon—a command he ignored—he was shot multiple times in the back. Take a look at body cam footage of the incident, then let’s disc... Full Article »

[Editor's note: If you're new to our site and have not subscribed to our free weekly newsletter, you can sign up HERE.] It’s time to ask, “Who actually understands what it’s like to be a police officer?” TV personalities? Office-bound politicians? Sports figures? They are suddenly all experts on law enforcement, controlling violence and making life or death decisions in an instant. At least they are from their comfortable chai... Full Article »

Of all the elements involved in force investigations, time is one of the most critical to understand and knowledgeably apply when judging an officers’ decisions and actions. It takes time to observe. It takes time to assess. It takes time to decide. It takes time to act. It takes time to react. It takes time to stopacting. Everything takes time and in pressurized, rapidly evolving force events, that time is often measured in milliseconds not mi... Full Article »

“When/Then” thinking—when this happens, then I will do this—has been recommended for ages as an effective self-training tool that can help you prepare for prompt, definitive, well thought-out action in a variety of situations. Investing in prior thinking into what you will do when faced with a challenging scenario can prove priceless in several ways…among them enhancing your safety. With that, have you thought about how you would rea... Full Article »

I’m starting this with a shout out to our brothers and sisters in corrections. We all know that dealing with people with a penchant for criminal behavior is part of the job for cops. Obviously, those encounters occur frequently on the street, but exposure to those individuals isn’t constant…all shift, every shift, throughout your career. Not so with corrections officers. These men and women are literally sealed off behind towering walls ... Full Article »

Want to see how incredibly fast someone can go from being completely turned away from you, walking away, to pivoting and charging right at you? Watch this video! One afternoon about a month ago, two Albuquerque officers spotted a man walking down the middle lane of a three-lane street openly carrying a knife. In the footage posted below, you’ll see that his back is squarely turned away from the first officer tailing him as he walks at a mode... Full Article »

Calibre Press has uploaded two short videos of officers discharging their firearms in the direction of human beings. The circumstances were very different in so many ways, but each involved making the decision to use deadly force and then actually doing so. This is the most serious of all the decisions officers have to make during their careers. The videos shown below, as with most of the videos we post for your convenience on our YouTube Chan... Full Article »

The concept of having social workers respond to emergency calls involving mentally ill subjects is—excuse the understatement—complex. These are highly unpredictable contacts often characterized by rapidly changing levels of confrontational behavior and overall threat to the responding parties which until now, in some places, have always been law enforcement officers. They can involve irrational thinking, paranoia, explosive anger and a ... Full Article »

Many cops share two common nightmares. One is related to their sidearm; the gun is stuck in their holster, the trigger won’t respond no matter how hard the officer pulls and/or the bullets just fall out of the gun.   The other is shooting someone who’s bearing down on them, intent to kill, and their rounds have no effect. This video is a real-life example of that second nightmare. Watch this clip and then we’ll discuss: ht... Full Article »

It’s a cold reality—one that many frustratingly refuse to accept—that there are some situations that simply cannot be deescalated, even in the face of impressive, potentially perilous efforts by police to reach that goal. Case in point: An encounter about a month ago between Phoenix officers and a 30-year-old man named Jordan Crawford. Just before 9pm one night, Crawford appeared on his ex-girlfriend’s apartment patio, prompting her... Full Article »

"…the test of reasonableness under the Fourth Amendment is not capable of precise definition or mechanical application." 100% of the people who give their opinions about an officer’s decision-making process and subsequent conduct during an interaction with a citizen captured on video, are giving those opinions in the aftermath. While viewing said video they are experiencing zero stress. As they sit sipping their extra-large Cinnamon Roll F... Full Article »

If You Think So, You’re Out of Your Mind. A Christmas concert outside a Manhattan church this week ended in an encore of gunfire when a gunman with a lengthy criminal record, brandishing two semi-autos—one in each hand—and carrying a backpack with a can of gasoline, rope, wire, tape, knives and a Bible inside, began firing rounds, sending terrified concertgoers scrambling to get out of range or find some kind of cover. One elderly man... Full Article »

While on patrol two Phoenix, AZ police officers came across an altercation between a man and a woman in the street. They stopped to investigate in order to find out what was happening. Here's video of the encounter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYsLMeOydTQ Initially, the man involved walked away from the officers as they approached. Now what? Well, I guess it would depend on what they saw and what they believed to be happeni... Full Article »

In Philadelphia, PA on October 26, 2020, police received a call from a woman who advised she was the daughter to a mother and father who were both being abused by their son. She stated on the 911 recorded line that “they called the cops earlier and the cops is not doin’ nothing he’s over there hitting my mother and father. He got a case for being violent and everything, he got a whole record.” The police arrived and immediately encount... Full Article »

On September 5th Chicago Police officers responded to a stabbing call in a park at approximately 1:40 a.m. Upon arrival, three officers, one of whom was a female sergeant, came upon a 34-year-old man holding a large butcher-type knife. Officers were wearing body cameras that were activated and in the video of the encounter, you can hear officers shout orders at the man, including, “Put your goddamn hands up. Don’t be reaching for nothin... Full Article »

Thank you video from some of the Calibre Press team https://youtu.be/42wIHFEk7vg... Full Article »

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It’s been reported that Jack Wilson, a range instructor with a law enforcement background, had "eyes" on Keith Kinnunen right away.  Something wasn’t quite right about him. He was standing along the side wall toward the back of the church wearing a long, seemingly unnecessary coat and what observers reported as an “obvious” fake beard and perhaps a wig.  Police officers describe bystanders’ intuitive responses to Kinnunen in several w... Full Article »