For Immediate Release: 10/25/2017
Contact:
Justin Mason | justin.mason@dcjs.ny.gov
Press Office, Division of Criminal Justice Services | (518) 457-8828
FACT SHEET: Reality-Based Training Instructor Course
- The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) is sponsoring the Reality-Based Training Instructor Course this week to prepare officers to teach the curriculum at regional police academies across the state and within their own departments.
- Reality-based training allows officers to engage in realistic scenarios they are likely to experience on patrol – from routine encounters with people on the street to high-risk situations with the potential for deadly violence. The training scenarios allow instructors to work with officers to review and evaluate their performance with the ultimate goal of improving decision-making skills, reactions and responses for better outcomes on the street for officers and civilians. The hands-on training is designed to recreate the stress experienced by officers during those interactions.
- The five-day course, developed by the DCJS Office of Public Safety, includes lectures, covering topics such as the effect of stress on the body and use-of-force. The course also includes 18½ hours of practical exercises. Other topics covered include the use of reality-based training equipment, designing and planning reality-based scenarios, isolation drills and safety during reality-based training.
- The New York State Municipal Police Training Council endorsed the future inclusion of reality-based training in the 656-hour Basic Course for Police Officers, which recruits for village, town, city and county police agencies must successfully complete. Law enforcement academies across the state that offer the Basic Course for Police Officers will be required to have reality-based training component in the near future.
- DCJS has offered Reality-Based Instructor Training Courses in Erie, Monroe, Nassau, Oneida, Rockland and Tompkins counties and will have trained approximately 140 instructors once the course in Albany County concludes on Friday. The train-the trainer model allows the agency to increase the capacity to provide the training throughout the state: Instructors who have attended these trainings have taught additional courses in Monroe, Rockland, Ulster and Yates counties.
- Last year, New York invested approximately $322,000 to purchase and distribute 269 non-lethal training firearms, accompanying ammunition and 476 full sets of protective gear – including helmets with facemasks, neck guards, chest and groin protectors and gloves – to 33 police academies and agencies throughout the state. Police academies train about 1,000 recruits annually and thousands of current officers attend in-service trainings at the academies each year.
- Law enforcement training is a key function of DCJS, with the agency providing courses in topics ranging from homicide and child abuse investigation to safety and suicide prevention. On average, the agency provides nearly 400 courses attended by roughly 20,000 law enforcement professionals.
- The Municipal Police Training Council, members of which represent law enforcement and academia and are appointed by the Governor, sets minimum training requirements for newly-appointed police and peace officers; develops training for police officers appointed to supervisory positions; and designs and approves model policies, among other responsibilities. DCJS’ Office of Public Safety provides staff support to the Council and reviews curricula submitted by law enforcement agencies and training academies to ensure that each course meets or exceeds the Council's minimum standard for topics and hours.
- The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (www.criminaljustice.ny.gov) is a multi-function criminal justice support agency with a variety of responsibilities, including law enforcement training; collection and analysis of statewide crime data; maintenance of criminal history information and fingerprint files; administrative oversight of the state’s DNA databank, in partnership with the New York State Police; funding and oversight of probation and community correction programs; administration of federal and state criminal justice funds; support of criminal justice-related agencies across the state; and administration of the state’s Sex Offender Registry.