GREENFIELD — Lights on and sirens blaring. Tires squealing over the pavement.
Police are often called upon to drive at high speeds that can create dangers for themselves and those they share the road with.
Driving safely is a responsibility local officers say they don’t take lightly. So, they practice.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryOnce a year, police officers are required to undergo some sort of emergency vehicle operations training. There is no statewide guideline for what that training must include; every department sets its own standards, officials said.
For cops in Hancock County, though, it means taking advantage of a mile-long track 40 miles away from home, at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Plainfield.
There, they can practice driving, weaving their way through obstacle courses that test and challenge them.
It’s a chance for officers to push their vehicles to the max, said Greenfield Police Chief Jeff Rasche, whose officers participated in driver training this month. They learn what speeds their car can safely reach and what fast-paced turns it can handle. That way in the heat of a high-stress moment — when they’re chasing a suspect along the interstate, for example — they don’t have to worry or second guess themselves, he said.
Through practice, this tactical way of driving becomes muscle memory, he said.
Emergency vehicle operations training is one of the basic skill sets taught at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy to all those who receive a badge.
The academy’s defensive driving track was built in the 1980s, according to the academy’s website. The training offered there includes classroom lessons as well as driving practice. There are plans to eventually add a city grid, gravel roads and possibly an interstate on-and-off ramp to give officers even further training, the website states.
Every year police departments from around the state fight for time to train there. Whiteboards posted around the office building there show departments have booked training more than three months in advance, even taking times after sunset to ensure their officers can squeeze in the practice.
Outside, orange cones dot the track’s blacktop, creating an obstacle course of sorts. Officers are told to weave in and out of the cones the same way they’d weave through traffic. They take turns at speeds of 40 to 60 mph, slam on their brakes with little warning and make split-second decisions about which direction to head next.
And it’s all to ensure they’ll know what to do once they get out on their city’s streets.
There are certain basic driving skills officers are told to forget when they climb behind the wheel of their squad car, said Capt. Brian Guinn, the road patrol captain for the Greenfield Police Department, who is a state-certified emergency vehicle operations trainer.
Teens taking their first driver’s education course are told to imagine their steering wheel is a clock and to place their hands at 10 and 2, and make turns by placing hand over hand to turn the steering wheel.
Police officers are told differently, Guinn said. Officers keep their hands at 9 and 3, and they make turns without varying from those positions. It gives them more control of the car when they’re having to drive quickly.
Officers can find themselves in hot water if they don’t follow their training or their department’s driving policies, Guinn said.
The St. Joseph County prosecutors have called a grand jury to decide if an officer in South Bend should be held responsible for the death of a woman killed in a crash in July. It’s unclear if the officer had his siren on when the crash occurred, according to reports.
And in Johnson County, an investigation was launched into whether an officer intentionally caused a crash to end a car chase, using a pursuit intervention technique, commonly known as a PIT maneuver, which wasn’t allowed by his department’s policies.
Guinn said one of the most important things he tries to convey to his trainees is the need to overcome the adrenaline rush they’re sure to get when speeding along after a fleeing suspect.
Those moments can be thrilling, Guinn admits; but they’re also incredibly dangerous for the officers, the suspect and other drivers.
Practicing — especially in a safe environment like the one offered at the academy’s track — ensures that officers are aware of how their bodies might reach in those situations, Guinn said. They learn what they can handle mentally and physically, which will make them better officers in real world situations, he said.