ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – State attorney Andrew Bain hosted a “De-escalation forum” on Thursday evening in Orlando. Several chiefs of police and county sheriffs were in attendance.
An impactful moment during the forum was a hypothetical scenario simulating a traffic stop. During this, officers and citizens took turns playing the roles of the driver and law enforcement.
The goal was to highlight the heightened stresses from both points of view during a traffic stop.
“Find better ways to communicate with each other and don’t cause discord that will cause disagreement, and instead, just allow yourself to experience who that person is and bring it full circle into the conversation,” Bain said.
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Eatonville Police Chief Stanley Murray said he speaks to his children about ways to get home safely if they are pulled over by law enforcement.
“My young son is turning 18 this Friday. I teach him to value himself and take whatever you’ve been trained and taught and don’t deviate from it because of the situation,” Murray said.
Murray also emphasized the human aspect of officers, adding colleagues need to be responsible for each other.
“If our friend is not at her best today, I should be able to recognize that. Identify that with my supervisor and say maybe this is not a good day for her to go out. She’s not being the person she’s usually being,” Murray said regarding the hypothetical scenario.
Legal experts told law enforcement how their policies address discrimination. They don’t address how to have their voices heard if they become a victim.
“But what the policy doesn’t say is how if a citizen feels an officer was biased, a racial bias, can make a claim? What are the criteria that a citizen needs to have to make a claim against an officer?” Dr. Jeremy Levitt said
Bain also advised with universal carry, if your gun and registration are in the same location, such as a glove box, notify the officer and don’t reach toward the firearm.
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