ASSOCIATE Magazine FBINAA Q1-2025

FBINAA.ORG | Q1 2025

BROADENING THE ROLE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT

ANDREW DENNIS, DO FACS, FACOS, ETHAN DENNIS, EMT, AND TZVI MONTROSE

Contemporary law enforcement is in crisis. The fabric of policing is being torn apart by worsening negative community perceptions, a widening rift between officers and society, a decrease in morale among the ranks leading to poor mental health, and difficulties in recruitment. This ever growing rift is due to a loss of confidence and epidemic distrust that is fueled by divergent and contentious voices whose perspectives are based on vastly different perceptions surrounding common circumstances.

T he overwhelming majority of men and women in law enforcement, despite wanting to serve the community and society, are now more than ever, viewed adversarially. This distorted relationship has fostered a deeply rooted polarity that often eclipses the positives of policing and the reasons so many enter the field. Continued polarization frequently undermines the positive encounters and experiences that provide sustainment for both the community and for those who serve. This can jeopardize lives, mental well being, and inhibit progress toward mending the rift. Policing needs to embrace change in order to change the public’s perception. By focusing primarily on discipline, we have fostered a culture of “us versus them,” which has led to a model of survival over service. Laws are intended to promote the public good, to maintain order, to discourage recklessness and to protect both the individual and the community. However, when addressed from an adversarial position, whether true or perceived, these interactions more commonly foster resentment over receptivity, negating the intended purpose. When the enforcer is able to act from a platform of genuine caring and service, discipline can be accepted more easily and thus viewed without an overwhelming negative bias. It is only recently that law enforcement has begun to recognize that the root causes of many of its own vulnerabilities parallel those of issues facing the communities. Psychological stress and learned helplessness all contribute to mental illness. They are frequently augmented by drugs and alcohol and often culminate in dangerous behaviors – even suicide. In recent years, much needed attention has been directed toward training healthcare providers and community social workers on trauma informed care. This began with recognizing post-traumatic stress injury occurring in victims of trauma and is just beginning to percolate into the consciousness of the community and first responders. A novel solution takes shape amid these

challenging realizations. Law enforcement officers (LEOs) must be empowered to recognize, embrace, assist and offer aid to those in crisis while also serving as the protector and enforcer. Every day police officers rescue civilians and save lives, yet these acts are often undervalued and repeatedly go unnoticed. By reframing the LEO mission to include physical or psychological rescue as a core role, we have the opportunity to change how we see ourselves and how we are perceived by the community we serve. Thinking beyond enforcement and embracing medical and psychological rescue creates an opportunity to improve how LEOs serve society as well as themselves. It can impact officer and civilian survival when faced with injury, it can address and improve psychological fortitude, and it offers countless opportunities for community engagement. THE PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF POLICE VS. FIRE AND EMS Policing has relegated the “hero” role to the fire service. Public perception has come to favor fire and EMS services while casting a perpetual shadow of distrust over the police. By simply evaluating the language used to communicate their purpose to the public, we see considerable divergence between these agencies. Police departments commonly adopt words such as protect, serve, respect, and courage while fire and EMS often use language like "save life and property" or "there when you need us." Despite considerable overlap in their common mission to help others, these phrases demonstrate a fundamental difference in how police and fire perceive themselves. It is no surprise that these perceptions are mirrored by society. This divergence in perception can largely be attributed to the proactive role of law enforcement in the community, which is centered on protecting individuals and preventing, stopping and responding to crime. This role leads to frequent interactions aimed at correcting behaviors. To do so, police officers are armed and given the power to limit or take away an individual’s

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