Keith Merith, who held a variety of command positions during his 31-year career in policing, is the author of the forthcoming memoir A Darker Shade of Blue: A Police Officer’s Memoir.
In North America, there is an underlying truth that Black, racialized and Indigenous people have a different experience when it comes to policing – an experience that many from these demographics describe as antagonistic and tyrannical. To them, the police are the antithesis of the slogan, “to serve and protect.” These groups do not feel safe even when the police are nearby because they feel that the police are often the problem. The distrust is so prevalent in these groups that they are less likely to call 911 for help, less likely to report crime or to give information to assist in solving crime. Yes, they want officers to be properly trained, equipped and capable, but to also carry out their duties without prejudice, bigotry, racial profiling and all the trappings that go with inferior policing.
When racialized parents are considered negligent for not giving their teenage children “the talk” about how they should deal with police interactions, we definitely have a problem. We need to address the call for reform from those who have stated that they are antagonized, victimized and traumatized by the kind of police conduct that was at the forefront of North America-wide protests.
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So what does police reform look like?
Historically, police reform initiatives that I have encountered are focused on administration, operational needs and changes to the use of force. Very little attention is focused on the human side of policing. Yes, there has been a concerted effort to recruit the right members, including those who are from minority groups, but is that enough? How do you ensure that each individual officer will properly represent your organization? As part of reform, let me suggest the following:
Have a rigorous process to select your coach officers. Services should seek members that exemplify their desired values and culture to train and influence officers-in-training. The newbies are sponges that absorb what you put in front of them; you get out what you put in. Also, the assignment of coach officer should not be linked to the promotional process – that just encourages some to seek it as a platform for advancement – and other incentives should also be provided, if feasible. During my time in the service, I did not see much encouragement from senior management to diversify their coach-officer pool. To me, it is exceedingly important that racialized officers be engaged as part of the solution by participating in the educational and emotional growth of newer officers.
Every recruit must be exposed to training that is accountability-based. New officers must be made to understand duty-of-care (the proper treatment of the people they are sworn to serve) and how to manage situations that run contrary to that basic premise. Any officer at the scene of an incident where one or more officers are not performing their duties as required has a responsibility to intervene on behalf of the subject in order to safeguard that individual’s rights, safety and liberty. Failing to do so would result in them being fully accountable and liable for the misdeeds. There is a clear gap in current training regarding the lack of responsibility and accountability of on-scene officers to manage each other. It is the responsibility of attending officers to create the best outcome for all involved, as best they can. Dynamic simulation training – as real as you can make it – should have scenarios that include dealing with out-of-control officers.
We need to better train officers on professional first contact. By first contact, I mean the professional approach that officers take when dealing with initial engagements. Most police contacts come in non-violent, low-risk situations, such as traffic stops. When officers start the conversation by stating “Do you know why I stopped you? Where are you coming from? Driver’s licence, ownership and insurance,” it tends to set up an adversarial first contact that often goes wrong. As a uniformed supervisor, most of the complaints I’ve received from citizens about my officers surrounded civility. Citizens often complain that the subsequent escalation could have been avoided if the officer did not make them feel disrespected. Critical decision-making, de-escalation and disengagement techniques should also form the foundation of this type of training.
Change the mindset of officers from arrest-first to problem-solving. Early in my career as a uniformed patrol officer, I was approached by a seasoned detective at the station who advised me to make more arrests. I asked why. His response was that it demonstrated that I was working, and it would give me more experience in processing paperwork, making me more viable for promotions. He was giving me advice, and he wasn’t wrong. I just couldn’t get past the fact that there were real consequences on the back end of that advice. We were dealing with people’s lives. Young and somewhat naive, I started to make arrests. My numbers went up, and I was praised by my supervisors. But it didn’t feel right. I knew that some of these arrests could have been handled differently. Problem-solving would have been the best course of action. Police organizations need to create incentives for officers to do better in this realm, perhaps by way of documenting details of successful problem-solving for each situation and recognizing officers for not making arrests, if other, more compelling options are available.
Without these changes, I fear the necessary police reforms will not be complete.