TENACITY TRAINING - Develop a mindset for physical & ethical survival
By Robert Vernon
Published in Law Officer Magazine © 2007
After serving several years on the streets of Los Angeles as a uniformed police officer, I was called to return to the academy as an instructor. One requirement for recruit graduation was to complete a seven-mile run within a given time period. Many recruits did not relish long-distance running and often questioned the job relevance of this requirement. We admitted that police foot pursuits rarely went beyond a few hundred yards, but we had a different purpose for this training, which we called “Tenacity Training.” Our purpose was to build within recruits the ability to persevere in difficult or challenging circumstances. This “Pride Run” was intended to show them they could accomplish more than normally expected if they adopted an attitude of endurance. It was designed to build tenacity—a mindset for survival.
Some time later, two of our uniformed officers—former recruits who
had experienced the Pride Run—made a routine traffic stop for a
boulevard stop-sign violation, not realizing the vehicle’s four
occupants were heavily armed members of a terrorist organization.
These men could not afford to be found with weapons and other
contraband. They decided to kill the officers and flee.
As the officers approached the vehicle, suddenly all four doors flew
open and the suspects began firing. Both officers were hit before
they drew their guns and knocked down by the force of the bullets.
One officer was struck in his hand as he attempted to return fire.
The bullet coursed up his arm, disabling his gun hand. He sat down
in shock, his gun dropped to the ground. The suspects moved forward
to finish the kill.
Later the officer stated, “That’s when I smelled the eucalyptus
leaves.” At the end of his Pride Run, this officer remembered
turning the corner at the west gate of Dodger Stadium. Eucalyptus
trees border this small stretch of roadway just a few hundred yards
from the entrance to the police academy. The scent signaled to him
he had completed the run. He had persevered.
The memory of his tenacity and successful completion of the Pride
Run inspired him to a new level of determination in the present
struggle for survival. Somehow, he picked up his gun with his other
hand and continued the gunfight. His wounded partner also began
fighting back. They killed two of their assailants and wounded the
other two, winning the gunfight. These officers provide testimony to
the importance of the right attitude for survival.
Ethical Perseverance
Presentations or articles on officer survival appropriately address tactics, strategies and preparations designed to eliminate or reduce the likelihood of physical injury or death. But other dangers, pressures and unique demands in our profession can unexpectedly strike down talented officers. Law enforcement demands a tenacious attitude toward maintaining professionalism and ethical behavior as well perseverance in physical struggles. By far, more officers are eliminated from the service by succumbing to these so-called nonviolent “terminators.”
Our exposure to what I call the extremes of life (death, tragedy,
altercations and crime) can result in building a callous attitude as
a defense mechanism. A regular dose of witnessing people at their
worst can result in cynicism. Remember, we are called when things go
wrong, when people misbehave. Along with these exposures come many
dangerous and unethical temptations. Why not “manufacture” probable
cause, if not doing so will set a guilty predator free? Why not
leave some of the seized narcotics available to the informant if the
department will not provide some expense funds for informants?
I have not known fellow officers who deliberately plan to become
criminals, but I have seen many terminated and/or sent to prison
after going down the slippery slope of small compromises. Just as
you take steps to prepare for physical survival, take steps for
ethical survival:
1. Recognize that professional ethical survival is a challenge and
plan for it;
2. Talk about this aspect of survival with your partner, and
identify the sources of the temptation to compromise. Discuss these
threats just as you do the physical ones;
3. Declare your planned course of action if and when you must
confront an ethical dilemma. We are more likely to keep commitments
that we make public as opposed to those we make to ourselves; and
4. Invite accountability. Ask your partner to bring to your
attention those small steps of compromise you may easily overlook.
In Summary
Officer survival does not just happen. You are more likely to successfully complete a fulfilling career if you anticipate your challenges, plan for them and carry out your strategy—on point.
Bob Vernon retired from the Los Angeles Police Department after 37 years on the force. He earned an MBA at Pepperdine University and is a graduate of the University of Southern California’s Managerial Policy Institute and the FBI’s National Executive Institute. After retirement, Vernon founded The Pointman Leadership Institute (visit http://pointmanleadership.org), which provides principle-based ethics seminars around the world for police agencies, parliament members, military leaders and a variety of other groups.