City of Prairie Village
Home MenuDe-Escalation and Use of Force
Use of force in law enforcement is an issue of critical concern both nationally, and in the Prairie Village community. When circumstances reasonably permit, officers should first attempt to use non-violent strategies and techniques to decrease the intensity of a situation, improve decision-making, improve communication, reduce the need for force, and increase voluntary compliance (e.g., summoning additional resources, formulating a plan, attempting verbal persuasion).
De-escalation techniques may include, but are not limited to:
- Providing a warning;
- Verbal persuasion and advice through conversation;
- Stabilizing a situation through time, distance or positioning, and
- Requesting additional or specialized personnel to respond (i.e., Co-Responder), and more.
Our officers are trained to make all attempts to de-escalate a situation. If that’s not possible, officers may use the degree of control or force that is reasonably necessary to ensure a safe outcome. By using de-escalation techniques, officers can reduce the need for use of force and keep officers and members of the public safe.
In situations where a use of force does occur, officers are required to immediately notify the on-duty shift supervisor. The officer(s) then completes a report, which is then reviewed by the on-duty shift supervisor, division commander, and the Chief of Police.
