On Saturday night, a Washington State Patrol Trooper Scott Johnson was shot in the head in Long Beach, WA. Trooper Johnson was assisting a fellow Trooper in a DUI arrest. The first Trooper had earlier stopped a woman and arrested her for DUI. The other Trooper took the arrested driver to the station for processing while Trooper Johnson stayed with the driver's car.
During DUI arrested, it is common to tow the driver's car. In this case, Trooper Johnson was performing an inventory of the car while he waited for the tow truck to arrive. During that time, an unidentified man came up to Trooper Johnson and shot him in the head. The tow truck driver found Trooper Johnson.
Trooper Johnson was transported to the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland for treatment. Miraculously, the Trooper's injuries are not life threatening. Police are still looking for the gunman, and the WSP announced a $26,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the shooter.
This incident highlights a tragic reality about police work. It is extremely dangerous. Whenever police make a traffic stop, they keep this danger in mind. Many of the practices and procedures police use during traffic stops are designed with this danger in mind. Police typically refer to these concerns as officer safety.
Whenever someone is pulled over, it is a good idea to bare officer safety concerns in mind as well. Showing respect of officer safety will typically make a police encounter go more smoothly. On the other hand, failing to show respect for officer safety, will typically escalate the tension in a police encounter.
During any police contact, a person should always keep their hands in sight. If in a car, this means the driver should keep his hands on the steering wheel when the officer approaches. The driver should only reach for his wallet or papers when the officer can clearly see him. At night it is a good idea to turn on the car's interior lights. This will help the officer see into the car. When a person is out of a car, he should keep his hands out of his pockets at all times.
It is also important to remain calm. Police encounters are inherently tense situations. Many people get emotionally when they are worried about the possible consequences of the contact. In some cases, people feel that the police are violating their rights. This can lead to anger and frustration. Angry and belligerent behavior is threatening to police who are worried about their own safety. It is important to remember that in our system, a skilled attorney can challenge any problem in court.
When a person is calm and shows that he is not a threat, police are able to relax. This more comfortable environment lead to better police encounters. Police officers are people, and their perceptions are impacted by their states of mind. It stands to reason that a more relaxed police officer will perceive someone differently than a tense police officer. During a police encounter it is in a person's best interest to have the police at ease. This is accomplished by respecting officer safety.
