Central Bucks Regional Police Department, as Lead Agency, will receive $159,037 from the federal government to launch a collaborative in-house De-Escalation Program. As part of this grant, sub-awards have been made to CBRPD’s collaborative partners including Buckingham, Doylestown, and Plumstead Township Police Departments.

CBRPD is the only police department in Pennsylvania to receive funds toward de-escalation efforts from the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Community Policing Development grant program which totaled $31.3 million nationwide.

The program seeks to reduce the intensity of police encounters with the public during intense situations. The two-year grant will fund new virtual/augmented reality equipment, officer overtime, train-the-trainer program and monthly continuous training of all officers throughout the collaboration.  Four officers “trainers” will be selected, one from each department, to assist in building and delivering the new program.

Comments from the Chiefs:

Karl Knott, CBRPD - “Officers will experience and develop new knowledge through real-time comprehensive training sessions that provide immersive hands-on scenario-based exercises with detailed de-briefings and after-action review.”

Michael Gallagher, BTPD – “These ongoing training sessions will enhance and compliment officers’ previous classroom training experience in a way that has yet to be delivered in Pennsylvania.”

Dean Logan, DTPD -  “Implementing this new de-escalation training strategy will reduce the potential for officer and public injury, reduce complaints and liability to the departments.”

David Mettin, PTPD – “Our priority in this program is to help officers recognize aggressive behaviors and keep them from escalating, avoid/resolve negative interactions by employing effective de-escalation methods, tactical responses and distraction techniques to promote safe encounters.”