Problem in Law Enforcement Training: - Chief Scott Hughes

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐥𝐚𝐰 𝐞𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐞.

Professional athletes train relentlessly so they can perform during a relatively small window: 𝑔𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒. Their training is designed to mirror the speed, pressure, and consequences of performance.

Law enforcement works in reverse.

Officers may train for only a few hours a year in critical skills, usually in controlled, predictable environments, and are then expected to perform flawlessly, on demand, during rare, chaotic, high-stress moments with enormous consequences.

When incidents occur that don’t look good, some people assume they stem from ignorance or incompetence. Most often, they stem from something far simpler: 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡.

For those outside the profession, imagine a surgeon who practices critical procedures a few days a year, then is expected to perform flawlessly during a rare, high-risk operation at 3 a.m., after a long shift.

Or imagine only driving a few days a year, then being expected to handle a sudden skid on black ice at highway speed, perfectly, with lives on the line.

That’s policing.

In Ohio, police officers are required to complete 24 hours of Continuing Professional Training (CPT) each year to remain certified.

𝐈𝐧 𝐚 𝟐,𝟎𝟖𝟎-𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫, that equals about 𝟏.𝟏𝟓% 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.

Training requirements vary widely from state to state, both in hours and in what’s required.

Is that really enough?

That’s not a criticism of officers.

It’s a reality of the system.

It’s also worth saying this: at my agency, we exceed these minimums; our training officers put in far more time than the baseline because the job demands it.

Even then, we know there’s always more work to do.

And yes… it comes down to funding.

I don’t have all the answers. This isn’t about excuses.

It’s about understanding that when critical incidents occur, they often don’t come from poor judgment or lack of care; 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡-𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬.

Understanding that reality matters if we genuinely want better outcomes.