Baltimore's new approach to police training looks at the effects of trauma, importance of empathy
A three-minute viral video shows an irate Baltimore police officer berating a teenager because he ignored orders to stop skateboarding and called the officer “dude.”
“Obviously your parents don’t put a foot in your butt quite enough because you don’t understand the meaning of respect,” he shouted at the skateboarder, who remained relatively calm.
That 2007 interaction cost the officer his job. But as policing evolves, others are learning from his mistakes.
The Baltimore Police Department recently started requiring its members to complete a program on emotional regulation that uses video as a learning tool and teaches them the basics of brain science by examining the relationship between thoughts, feelings and actions. It’s a far cry from traditional police training.
