The Debrief with Jon Becker

Dr. Gary Klein, a renowned author and researcher in decision-making, shares his insights gathered from decades of study across various sectors, including military and emergency response. He discusses innovative techniques like the pre-mortem method to enhance decision-making under pressure. Klein recounts fascinating lessons learned from firefighters, emphasizing intuition over analysis. He highlights the importance of communication and mentorship in refining tactical skills, and explores how embracing failure can turn setbacks into valuable learning opportunities.

Join Sergeant Rafael Rosales and Officer Kevin Olejar from the Austin PD SWAT team as they share gripping stories from a critical incident that tragically claimed Officer Jorge Pastore's life. They discuss the intense emergency response, the tactical challenges faced during the operation, and crucial lessons learned about crisis management. Kim Pastore, Officer Pastore's wife, reflects on her husband's legacy and the foundation created in his memory, emphasizing the importance of first responder training and wellness initiatives.

Decision Making Excercise #3

On the afternoon of July 11, 2022, at about 1400 hrs, two Hamilton County Ohio Sheriff’s Detectives observed an escapee from the River City Correctional Facility in Cincinnati, in the parking lot of the Baymont Inn hotel.  Although they were unable to make a positive identification before the suspect entered the hotel, they contacted the Mason Police Department for support. A Mason officer learned that the female observed in the parking lot with the suspect (whom she had just met) was registered to room 310. These two detectives as well as several additional Mason police officers knocked on the door of the room and were immediately met with screaming, yelling, profanity and threats of violence made by the suspect. Mason Police immediately requested assistance from the Warren County Tactical Response Unit (WCTRU). The suspect then barricaded himself inside keeping the woman as a hostage and threatening to kill her if officers came through the door. Several times the suspect was seen at the window and officers could see a knife in his hand. WCTRU used a negotiator throughout the night to talk to the suspect but at approximately 0230 hrs as negotiations broke down, the team forced entry into room 310 and observed the suspect holding a knife to the hostage’s throat.  A single TRU team member fired one round into the suspect’s face, ending the standoff and recovering the hostage.  In keeping with our standard policy, we will not be using the suspect’s name or identifying him in any way.  It is our hope that he will be erased by the sands of time.  We will, of course, be using the officers’ names because they are heroes and need to be remembered. Book Recommendation:Leader Shift by John C Maxwell ISBN: 9780718098506The Mission, The Men, and Me by Pete Blaber ISBN: 9780425236574The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin ISBN: 9781250195777 Contact Info:Deputy Scott WilliamsWarren County Sheriff’s Office513-266-4536Scott.williams@wcsooh.org

Join Jeff Selleg from the National Tactical Officers Association, neuroscientist Dr. Henry Mahncke, and performance psychologist Dr. Brittany Loney as they dive into the future of cognitive training for tactical operators. They discuss how targeted brain exercises can enhance decision-making and situational awareness, revolutionizing law enforcement training. Learn about the power of neuroplasticity in rewiring the brain, innovative techniques like 'sound sweeps', and the incredible potential of apps like BrainHQ to transform mental performance in high-pressure environments.

The topic of resilience for first responders has fortunately become a more common discussion.  As the rate of suicides, addiction and burnout rise, discussions of grit or internal fortitude against adversity have become a frequent topic for articles, speeches and conference courses.  My guest today knows a great deal about this topic.   Justin Dodge is a 28-year veteran of the Denver Police Department (DPD) with 19 of those years spent on SWAT as an operator, assistant team leader, and team leader. In June 2023, Justin suffered a catastrophic injury during the Denver Nuggets championship parade, his left leg was pinned under an 80,000-pound fire truck which ultimately resulted in his leg being amputated below the knee. Despite this life-changing injury, Justin has made a full come-back and returned to full operational status on SWAT.  He also created a new business called Heavy Victory, LLC which provides wellness and resiliency training to government and commercial entities.Contact Info Email - Justin@heavyvictory.comIG - @heavy_victory_ Web -  https://www.heavyvictory.com  

On February 14, 2018, an active killer attacked the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland Florida killing 17 people and wounding another 17 people.  The shooter then managed to flee the scene by slipping in with other students.  The shooter was apprehended without incident over an hour later.  In the months and years that followed this incident there was a firestorm of media coverage and legal actions directed at responding law enforcement agencies not only criticizing their response to the incident but also their failure to intervene with the shooter despite numerous red flags that preexisted the incident.  Additionally, a Broward County Sheriff’s Office School Resource Officer was charged, but acquitted, of child neglect and culpable negligence. There were also more than 50 civil suits filed resulting in millions of dollars in settlements as well as reassignments and resignations in the responding agencies.My guest today is Chief Clyde Parry.  On the day of this incident Clyde was the interim Chief for the neighboring City of Coral Springs Florida and was responsible for setting up the initial incident command post and assuming incident command for the event. Clyde began his law enforcement career with the Derry Borough Police Department near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1986. In May of 1987 he relocated to Florida and began his career with the Coral Springs Police Department where he worked his way up through the ranks from Patrol Officer to Chief of Police. Clyde was sworn in as the permanent Chief of Coral Springs PD just 19 days after this event. Books RecommendedWhy Meadow Died: The People and Policies That Created The Parkland Shooter and Endanger America's Students -Andrew Pollack (Author), Max Eden (Author) - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1642932195 Contact Info Clyde Parry - boncly@bellsouth.net

In this episode, Josh Wofford instructs a DME: Decision Making Exercise to accompany the Parkland episode of The Debrief.A decision making exercise places you in the position of a leader on scene at a critical incident, and allows you to make decisions as if you were there. The purpose of the decision making exercises is to tap into the collective knowledge of your team.Instructions: Listen to the DME before listening to the full Parkland Debrief Episode. Pause after each set of questions and allow your team to discuss how they would address the scenario in Part 1. Then repeat the process for the remaining scenarios. Finally, watch the full episode of The Debrief to learn how the scenarios actually played out. DME's are a partnership between CATO and The Debrief. 

For our final episode of 2024's "Summer Lookback" series, we revisit episode 4 featuring Brent Stratton and Marcus Sprague. Brent is the Assistant Chief at a Southern California Police Department and the President of the California Tactical Officers Association (CATO).  Marcus is a recently retired Lieutenant at a Northern California PD and the Vice President of CATO.  Both Brent and Marcus are graduates of the CARO Strategic Leadership Program.To view the original episode, its follow-up, and recommended reading, please visit: https://thedebrief.live/episodes/?modal-link=https://thedebrief.live/episode-4/