LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Officers at the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections haven't had their normal in-person training since 2019. Instead, it's been online.
Daniel Johnson, president of the Louisville Corrections FOP (Fraternal Order of Police) Lodge 77, said officers typically have one week of in-person training every year. That includes firearms training, any type of de-escalation techniques and more. But for the past two years, training has been online through a program called Crimcast.
“A lot of national guidelines have changed. What we're allowed to do, what we're not allowed to do,” Johnson explained.
Following the death of George Floyd, a ban came out on the vascular restraint. But when Johnson was completing his own training on Crimcast, he came across a slide that he found disturbing.
“It caught me by surprise, especially with everything you're seeing around the country,” he said.
It's titled "Safer Control Options," and one of the pressure points listed is the jugular.
This slide included in an online training for Louisville Metro Corrections Officers called lists the jugular as one of the pressure points.
“So, to put out a brand new technique out on a slideshow only telling you to put pressure on someone's neck, that is an awful idea. That is reckless and it is dangerous,” Johnson said. “This is no different than what we were doing with the vascular restraint.”
The jail is pointing to COVID-19 for the lack of in-person training.
However, the Louisville Metro Police Department and Louisville Fire both have been conducting in-person trainings. They even took part in Friday's joint "Operation Thunderstruck" training with multiple local agencies.
“And it's like ... you keep chipping away at the standards,” Johnson said.
By Friday afternoon, WDRB News was sent this statement from Metro Corrections Assistant Director Steve Durham:
“We agree that in-person training is the best approach to understanding the application of pressure-point, or pain-compliance techniques.
That's why Metro Corrections plans to expand its in-person training, which has been limited by COVID-19, to cover these techniques."
Durham said in-person training could begin in the next couple of weeks.
Both Mayor Greg Fischer and Jail Director Dwyane Clark denied a request for an interview on this topic.
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