The New York Police Department has been criticized recently for police shootings and the ability of its officers to handle the stress of real world situations.  Some officers say that this has been because of the lack of realistic training.  Cadets for the New York Police Department go through the New York Police Academy.  Included in the training is firearms training.  Each officer must pass a certain accuracy score to move on.  However, some say that because this is static shooting, which is where neither the shooter nor the target are moving, the officers are not getting the experience necessary to handle themselves properly when confronted with a difficult situation.  Although the number of police shootings is low, 92 cases out of 23 million people encountered, each shooting is put under the microscope of the public eye.  Some suggest realisting training by using scenario rooms and simulators.  The commissioner hired an outside company, the RAND Corporation, to run an analysis and overview of their training.  The report from the company criticized the efficiency of the training
Raj Bhagowalia
12/13/2012 10:30:07 am

I mean, it makes little sense to train police officers with static shooting in firearms training. The most important thing police need to be deft at is shooting their rifle in tough situations, so shooting at a non-moving target is pointless. A criminal won't just stand there and give the police a ten-second aiming session; they will be running and dodging, so police need to be trained to hit moving targets.

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Katie Hill
12/14/2012 11:34:16 am

I find it surprising that the NYPD is just now starting to realize this and are finally making some much needed training improvements. I would have thought that they would have been trained under many different potential situations, not just static shooting. I would assume that trying to hit a moving target can be extremely difficult but it is definitely a skill that should be required in order to become a police officer.

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