The North Bay Police Service has been accepted into the Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement (ABLE) Project.
The American program was created out of Georgetown University Law Centre.
Its goal is to implement international training and support initiative for law enforcement agencies by building a culture of peer intervention that prevents harm.
"It deals with police officers and their ability to intervene in stressful situations and support each other. The development of this program is as a training platform that is now being provided to police officers that come in and talk to officers about how do we intervene," said North Bay Deputy Police Chief Mike Daze who is coordinating the new partnership.
"How do we, when we are faced with these challenges and situations, work with other officers so that we can make sure that tragedies are avoided, that police conduct and mistakes can be avoided, that we do not take this tunnel vision approach to some of our interactions."
The North Bay Police Service joins a select group of more than 60 other law enforcement agencies to participate in the ABLE Project’s international rollout. To date, hundreds of police agencies across the country have expressed interest in participating. The North Bay Police Service is the second in Canada to be accepted in the program.
“Our police service is committed to increasing confidence and building respectful relationships within our community,” Daze stated.
“The Able Project will provide relevant training for our officers in dealing with policing in today’s world where service requirements and accountability is a must.”
Evidence-based and field-tested, the ABLE Project was developed by Georgetown Law’s Innovative Policing Program in collaboration with global law firm Sheppard Mullin to provide practical active bystandership strategies and tactics to law enforcement officers to prevent misconduct, reduce officer mistakes, and promote health and wellness.
“Intervening in another’s action is harder than it looks after the fact, but it’s a skill we all can learn. And, frankly, it’s a skill we all need – police and non-police. ABLE teaches that skill,” stated Chair of the ABLE Project Board of Advisors, Sheppard Mullin partner, Jonathan Aronie.
Two senior North Bay police officers will participate in the ‘Train the Trainer’ event which will be completed by the end of January 2021. These officers will become certified ABLE trainers and over the coming months, all of the police service’s officers will receive eight hours of in-house evidence-based active bystandership education designed, not only to prevent harm, but to change the culture of policing.
Police services must apply to the program and participation is provided at no cost to the police service.
