LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Lincoln Police Department has implemented a new type of training to help improve officers’ engagement with the community during calls.

Earlier this year, LPD began offering virtual reality training through its partnership with Axon. LPD said the program is a crucial tool for learning how to de-escalate situations while helping officers gain confidence.

LPD Sergeant Rusty Lashley said all community engagement modules allow officers to experience a situation from the perspective of a civilian and an officer.

Across 37 modules, LPD is able to gain first-hand experience of situations he would usually only see in the field.

Monday 10/11, I had the opportunity to try a module and help a man suffering from schizophrenia.

“I experienced the same situation, that of schizophrenia, and shortly after, I went to a call for service where someone had been involved in an accident and was suffering a mental health episode. And that put me in this situation and I knew that just to give them some space, I knew I didn’t need to approach them,” Lashley said.

Lashley said mental health is an important aspect of their calls for service.

Through these community engagement modules, officers are able to first get a sense of what someone faced with the scenario might think, then move into the role of officer and make decisions that could worsen or defuse the situation.

“It was the first time, I’ve been an officer in 25 years, that I went through a training scenario where I was actually the person on the other side. It really opened my eyes,” Lashley said.

Officers can also complete modules on handling domestic violence, substance abuse, traffic stops and even duty-to-respond scenarios.

From LPD recruits to street officers, Lashley says the goal is for officers to complete the training monthly.

“The most important thing is the repetition of training. You have athletes who rep 10,000 times before actually competing in a match. So just having the officers go through the reps, getting that experience on both sides, I think it’s going to significantly help the officers be able to read the situation and make the right decision,” Lashley said.

LPD says that as the VR software evolves, they hope to provide Axon with scenarios they see frequently and build modules around them so agents can gain even more experience.

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