Many people who are upset with the actions of a select few police officers tend to push the narrative of defunding the police. By generalizing an entire group of people based on isolated incidents, communities nationwide could be destroyed by civil unrest.
After an unfortunate and tragic incident last year where an unarmed male’s neck was knelt on by police while bystander officers simply watched, policing tactics were reviewed nationwide. All around the country, police agencies and departments big and small revised their tactics and curriculum to incorporate more de-escalation training.
It is clear through this incident and others that law enforcement training needs to be more efficient, and this can mean higher costs. Defunding agencies can cause the opposite to happen – the advanced training officers undoubtedly need cannot exist without city/county/state funding.
Say a police department runs out of money. What happens?
• Police officers quit, leaving the agency/department heavily short-staffed.
• Members of law enforcement who stay despite the lack of funding often work extensive overtime hours on little to no sleep.
• Officers who stay on the force experience a drop in morale.
• Due to the lack of officers on staff and the money to support them, 911 calls may not result in an immediate police response – and could even go unanswered altogether.
While it is highly upsetting to hear of the instances when a citizen is unjustly killed, do not fall for the temptation to chant “defund the police.” These are times when the police need more funding to supply better, more realistic training. Defunding and disbanding departments will only guarantee an increase in crime and a decrease in police response to emergencies.
High performance requires hiring and retaining the right people and training them to exceptional levels. This requires the right training and higher standards, not eliminating them completely by not supplying them with funds.
Recently, VirTra’s Director of Training and Curriculum discussed this in detail in a Newsmax interview with other professionals. Watch the Newsmax special here.
