Line of duty

This webinar examines the problem of Intimate Partner Violence Strangulation and an innovative response policy. The presentation will include an overview of the nature and extent of strangulation, its dangers, and adverse medical consequences followed by a review of a Strangulation Ordinance in Burleson, Texas that mandates extensive training for first responders and a city-wide response protocol for strangulation detection and investigation, documentation of strangulation signs and symptoms, medical assistance, and service referrals for strangulation survivors.

Professor Christopher Stone recently completed a study of police-on-police shootings as part of a task force he chaired in New York State. He reported on his findings and recommendations, exploring the role of race in policing decisions, methods to improve training and tactics to defuse police-on-police confrontations before they become fatal, and methods to improve the investigations of such shootings.

Each year, 100-200 law enforcement officers die in the line of duty. Last year, 177 lost their lives — a 16-percent increase from 2010. As Attorney General Eric Holder noted, this is a devastating and unacceptable trend. NIJ has developed a robust research portfolio to improve officer safety and wellness and, ultimately, save lives. This panel discussed some of NIJ's most promising work to reduce shooting and traffic-related fatalities — consistently the leading causes of officer line-of-duty deaths — and improve officer wellness, which is inextricably linked with officer safety.