Virginia’s attorney general is rolling out his plan to improve relationships between police and communities.
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“Build trust and legitimacy in the community”.
After seeing the riots in Ferguson and Baltimore – all stemming from fatal encounters with officers – Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says he thought about what could be done to prevent a community in Virginia from suffering the same fate. And he says local agencies are eager for the opportunity. Several times a year ago, Myers said police recruits knocked on the doors of residents to introduce themselves and to listen to their concerns.
The OAG’s initiative follows the recommendations released in May by President Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing and the training initiatives promoted by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Herring said the training will be funded by his office’s budget and will not cost the individual cities that decide to participate.
Herring’s “dual-track training initiative” will provide officers with additional skills and tactics to deal with potentially confrontational situations, Herring said.
The Henrico and Richmond Police Departments have both already completed this type of fair and impartial training. Now, the state wants to make sure smaller jurisdictions have access to the programs as well. New initiatives will place special emphasis on topics such as impartial policing, use of force, situational decision making and bias awareness.
The ACLU of Virginia also weighed in.
The training sessions are not required, but many law enforcement leaders say it is necessary. “We’re all shaped by our personal experiences”, Herring said.
“The National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives support Attorney General Herring in the efforts being made by his office to safely and effectively protect our communities while ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and equally”, said Morris Roberson of the Central Virginia Chapter of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executrices (NOBLE)”.
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“The attorney general along with his staff has really taken the steps to look at a holistic way of approaching this problem”, Newport News Sheriff Gabe Morgan said during the news conference. Herring noted that Virginia has not seen the “explosive reaction” other states have.
