The Citizens Police Academy met outside the usual Bloomington Police Department meeting spot Tuesday night for an emergency vehicle operations demonstration.
The class first met up at a Monroe County Sheriff's Office location on South Kirby Road to go over the classroom portion of the lesson.
MCSO Lt. Troy Thomas showed the students dash cam videos from police cars pursuits. One video showed what started out as a speeding traffic stop and escalated to a car chase through Bloomington. Another video demonstrated the pursuit of a drunk driver, which ended in the officer using the Pursuit Intervention Technique maneuver to stop the driver.
The PIT maneuver is when the pursuing car forces the fleeing car to stop by causing it to turn sideways and lose control. BPD Sgt. Pamela Gladish said officers must be specially trained to use the maneuver and should not use it at high speeds or on turns.
“We can’t have anybody getting hurt,” Thomas said. “The decisions we make out on the street, we live with that.”
The class moved out into the garage for a demonstration of a felony traffic stop. At least two officers and two cars are required to perform this stop, but four officers is ideal.
The officers took two volunteers to act as the drivers in the stopped vehicle. The two students took the driver’s and passenger’s seats in the MCSO car parked in front of another MCSO sedan and SUV.
Two officers hopped into each car and began to command the two volunteers in the car in front of them. The officers stuck half of their bodies outside their doors and mimed a gun pointed at the vehicle.
“Driver, remove keys from ignition and put them on top of the car.”
“Put your hands out the window.”
The driver exited the vehicle and began walking backward toward the officers with his hands still in the air.
“Walk to the sound of my voice.”
When he reached the officer, he got down on his knees and put his hands behind his back, then the officers took him away for a pat-down.
The officers repeated this same protocol for the passenger of the vehicle.
With the conclusion of the demonstration, the students hopped in their cars and headed to the second location of the night — the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course.
BPD, MCSO, IU Police Department and Ellettsville Police Department are currently undergoing state-mandated training through the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course. The training started Sunday and will take place through Friday.
The large parking lot was filled with orange cones outlining a specific course. The officers must complete the course twice without hitting a cone.
The officers invited students into their cars to take them through the slow speed precision course. The vehicles flashed their red, white and blue lights as they wove through the cones both in drive and reverse.
