Wednesday, March 21, 2012
The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) hosted a summit last month to address line-of-duty police deaths attributable to distracted driving. Participants included law enforcement leaders and trainers who are committed to reducing vehicle-related law enforcement deaths. FLETC Director and former police officer Connie Patrick welcomed the attendees and challenged them to work toward improving officer safety in this area.
FLETC Driver/Marine Division Chief Bruce Brown was responsible for bringing the group together and asked each attendee to share openly. Time and again, men who had spent decades in law enforcement had tears in their eyes as they spoke of lost comrades.
Deputy Chief Mark Joseph, Las Vegas Metro PD, told of changes at LVMPD as a result of three vehicle-related LODDs during 2009. Presentations were also made by Kevin Navarro and Keith Wenzel of Dallas PD, another agency that has tried hard to learn from mistakes in an effort to prevent future tragedies. Both agencies are to be commended for their efforts.
