Canton Police Train with High-Tech New System
The $33,695 system will be paid for in part by the Ford Motor Co. Fund.
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Starting next year, Canton Township Police expect to have a MILO Range Pro 4 system in place, according to an article from the Canton Observer.
The new high-tech system, like a crime-fighting video game, uses a large movie-type screen and computer technology, the article said. The purpose is to improve judgment in use-of-force options like which weapons to deploy or whether to simply use voice commands, according to the article.
The 86-officer department will use more than 500 crime-scene scenarios to polish police skills like talking a suspect out of a threatening situation and knowing when to use last-resort shooting to kill, the article said.
“It challenges the officer's judgment skills,” Public Safety Director Patrick Nemecek told the Observer.
The department is buying the $33,695 system from Ann Arbor-based IES Interactive Training, according to the article. The money comes from a $10,000 gift given by the Ford Motor Co. Fund through the Canton Community Foundation, a $5,000 donation from the Michigan Municipal Risk Management Association and $18,695 from a federal Justice Assistance Grant and local crime-related forfeiture dollars, according to the article.
Aysha Jamali
12:10 pm on Monday, November 19, 2012
Do you think this is money well spent?
Steven S
5:27 pm on Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Not at all.
Aysha Jamali
7:59 pm on Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Why is that, Steve?
Steven S
8:22 am on Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Although it's a good thing that none of the money funding this is coming from local taxpayer dollars, there are other police departments where this technology would be more useful. Canton is consistently rated as one of the safest communities in the US. Correct me if I'm wrong, but this technology seems to be to reduce improper or deadly force - and this is not a problem that we have in Canton - it seems our officers are already well trained in the use of proper force.
All-in-all, it seems to be a use of federal dollars that could be better spent elsewhere, and the time that these police officers use to train on this technology does directly cost Canton taxpayers money and that time could be better spent for other things.