Training & Education

Several new eLearning courses are available for LETCSA training credit on WSCJTC’s Acadis database. These courses are being offered in partnership with OpenSesame.

The following courses may be completed to receive LETCSA training credit:

• Building Relationships in the Community
• De-escalating a Mental Health Crisis
• Diversity and Cultural Competency for Law Enforcement
• Human Trafficking Awareness
• Policing the Homeless

The Patrol Rifle Instructor course is 40 hours in length. This course is designed for the Officer who already exhibits above average rifle shooting/manipulation skills and will give them the knowledge and techniques to better transfer those skills to other Officers. This course is NOT an advanced course NOR is it a remedial rifle training course for Officers with poor rifle skills.

Given a written and practical exam composed of vehicle contacts, person contacts and structural clearing. Participants will demonstrate the following skills:

• Threat recognition, prioritization and response
• High risk handcuffing
• Legal authority
• Contact and cover
• Equipment management
• Care after fire
• Angular evaluations on vertical edges
  • Structures and vehicles

This is an 80-hour comprehensive patrol tactics course designed to promote safe and effective tactics typically required on a daily basis for LEO. This course is the prerequisite for all other advanced/unusual occurrence tactics classes. As such, this class contains instructional delivery specific to the course content and not general instructional concepts.

Given a written and practical exam composed of vehicle contacts, person contacts and structural clearing. Participants will demonstrate the following skills:

• Threat recognition, prioritization and response
• Behavioral crisis de-escalation and communication
• Dealing with edged weapons
• Contact and cover
• Equipment management
• Critical Life Saving Skills
• Angular evaluations on vertical edges

In this self-paced course, officers learn about concepts and challenges relating to recidivism and people experiencing homelessness with the goal of better serving these individuals. Lectures, self-reflection, and videos assist officers in developing more understanding of their community.

This highly interactive 40 hour course presents the PTO model (sometimes called the Reno or COPS model) to field trainers engaged in training those who have recently completed the BLEA or Equivalency Academy. This program can be adapted for corrections, but the materials used in this class will be law enforcement related. It begins with an introduction to problem-based learning, which underlies the PTO program.

This 40 hour pre-supervisors course is designed to acquaint the prospective supervisor with an awareness of the demands and functions of the world of supervision. All too often, the newly appointed supervisor subsequently find themselves immersed in a world they didn’t anticipate and/or doesn’t understand. The transition from effective line worker to effective supervisor is difficult and challenging.

This 40 hour course is designed for persons with designated responsibilities associated with the property room. Course content includes:

• Washington State laws pertaining to property and evidence
• Job description and responsibilities
• Storage and organization methods
• WASPC accreditation standards
• WSP crime lab packaging and submission guidelines
• Audits and inventories
• Best practices: Policies and Procedures
• Retention guidelines and disposition projects
• Evidence in Court

This is hosted by WSCJTC Substance Use Disorders (SUD) Program and PEER WA.

This 90-minute presentation conducted by Peer WA will include a panel of subject matter experts who have
been engaged in supporting justice-involved individuals. The Recovery Navigator Program (RNP)
is a statewide effort that connects people with substance use disorders (SUD) and behavioral
health challenges to community resources.

Open to Law Enforcement and Corrections Staff

The process for Applying for Recognition of a Basic Reserve Academy and the individual applications for reserve officers is changing.

The Applications for Recognition of your Basic Law Enforcement Reserve Academy are due 90 days prior to the predicted start date of your reserve academies.

An increased understanding of the neurobiological impacts of trauma on victims of sexual violence have led to more effective law enforcement tactics for engaging with victims of these crimes. A trauma-informed approach by patrol officers, as prescribed in this two-hour training, can lead to increased criminal justice participation by victims and therefore higher rates of accountability for offenders.

cjtcgbvd@cjtc.wa.gov. This comprehensive sexual assault training is mandated through RCW 43.101.272 for officers assigned to regularly investigate sexual assault and other gender-based violence involving adult victims as well as the highest-ranking supervisors and commanders overseeing those investigations. Training is required within one year of being assigned. SAI is a 4-day online course which includes up to six hours of pre-course work and take-home materials.

The course is 16 hours in length and is taught in seminar style. Students are expected to have a good grasp of the basics of Sheriff Civil Function. This course will cover advanced interpretations of:

• Duties and responsibilities of the Civil Unit
• Service of process, statutes, fees and terms, legal issues
• DV "front office papers"
• Domestic violence legal issue
• Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs)
• Habeas corpus
• Personal property, attachment, replevins, bonds
• Personal property executions
• Real property
• Officer safety and domestic violence
• Restitution

This class is 24 hours in length. Course content will include:

• Sheriff's history
• Duties and responsibilities
• Service of process, statutes, fees and terms, legal issues
• DV "front office papers"
• Domestic violence legal issues
• Habeas corpus
• Personal property, attachment, replevins, bonds
• Personal property executions
• Real property
• Officer safety and domestic violence
• Restitution

This class is 4-hour online training is for staff either commissioned or civilian that work for the sheriff in the capacity of handling the mandated civil functions of a Sheriff’s Civil Unit. These include service of process, protection orders, seizure and forfeiture of personal or real property and how to properly execute a Sheriff’s Sale.

In this course, participants will learn the importance of applying a trauma-informed, Start By Believing response in their interactions with victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, and other forms of gender-based and personal violence. Participants will also hear from survivors in WA State about their experiences working with the criminal justice system and how the Start By Believing approach could have or did benefit those interactions. Participants will also learn about the content of WSCJTC’s victim interviewing course (Sexual Assault Investigations – Victim-Centered Engagement and Resiliency Tactics) and the impact of wellness skills on interactions with victims.

The Statewide Regional Training Coordinator program provides our stakeholders with a centralized contact for training. The Regional Training Coordinator's focus is to provide all different avenues of training information.

This introductory course is designed to help you understand why Substance Use Disorder (SUD) is considered a chronic brain disease and how your interactions within the corrections setting can have a positive or negative effect for people using drugs.

You will learn to recognize behaviors that might be substance use related and how to engage with people based on those behaviors to have the best possible outcomes.

You will be introduced to community members with lived experience, and learn some of the risk factors, such as trauma, that can lead to substance use and that recovery is possible.

This online course is for WA State law enforcement investigators, coroners, and medical examiners who are responsible for investigating child fatality cases. The goal of the course is to help investigators become proficient in investigating sudden and unexplained infant death and serious injury scenes.

This 90-minute, virtual course delves into the impact of neuroscience and psychotherapy on the lives of first responders.

This course is a two-hour, fully online, and self-guided series that introduces the audience to the United States criminal legal system. The first module defines the term structural inequalities and provides examples of various disparate racial and ethnic outcomes in U.S. institutions. The second module describes the rise in U.S. conviction and incarceration rates from the mid-1970s through today.

This self-paced course will provide an overview of the diversity and complexity of the Asian and Asian American communities in Washington and the United States. The course will examine the various social, cultural, and historical factors shaping the interaction between law enforcement and members of the Asian and Asian American communities. Cultural humility skills are emphasized throughout as they are essential when developing a deeper understanding of the complex identities of Asians and Asian Americans.

The Advanced Clinch, Pummel, and Wall Pin course builds on the principles that were introduced during the 6240 basic Use of Force and Control Defensive Tactics Instructor’s Course (UOF/CDT). Understanding the concepts of angles, controlling a subject’s posture, base, and structure play a vital role in being able to safely control that resistive or combative subject and take them into custody. By better understanding how to utilize human biomechanics during an arrest, while also incorporating their department issued uniform and utility belts, officers will be better equipped to modulate their force and bring about a safer resolution for all involved parties.

UOF/CDT Advanced Control Tactics Instructor Course will incorporate Lock Flows, Team Tactics and Flow Drills.  Standing Wrist, Elbow, Shoulder and Head Lock Flows will teach the student to a desired control hold when presented with a level of resistance.  Flow drills from various systems will teach the student to use muscle memory, tactile touch and dynamic movement to apply a technique without thinking before applying.  All lock flows and dynamic flow drills will end with controlled takedowns and arrest.

Team Tactics were developed to maximize control during physical interactions of suspects/subjects while enhancing safety for officers and suspects/subjects with establishing predetermined roles. By utilizing clear communication and coordinated movements, the suspect/subject is psychologically and physiologically overwhelmed during an encounter. Team Tactics are utilized during compliant and non-compliant engagements. Based on the suspect/subject’s actions, aggressive or eggressive (resistive), police officers will respond with a variety of options acting as a team to rapidly control the situation with the goal of making the encounter safer for all parties potentially involved.

The Advanced Counter-Striking 24-hour block builds on course 6240 of instruction and gives the trainer/practitioner a more comprehensive curriculum. The course aims to improve awareness, technical skill, and teaching ability for a higher level of understanding and functionality for the correct use and defense of an individual's counter striking tools.

The course progressions will build in layers of complexity to integrate all ranges of un-armed striking with an emphasis on reducing officer/suspect injuries, and safe training methods.

The curriculum will incorporate techniques and training practices from various disciplines brought together to effectively develop a cohesive understanding of efficient and practical skills which can be transmitted in a law enforcement capacity. Instruction includes the development of personal performance and skill, as well as coaching ability and a Train-The-Trainer component. Instruction blocks will include:

• Advanced understanding of unarmed ranges of striking and how to manage and use distance efficiently, safely, and appropriately for the application of intermediate force.
• The use of positional advantage for barriers, zoning and shielding.
• How to develop proper body mechanics to maximize leverage and effectiveness with all body generated striking tools.
• Proper form and safe execution of a full array of striking tools, including hands (open and closed), feet, elbows, knees, and forearms with the ability to modulate force according to individual situations, and/or officer/ suspect performance disparities.
• Drills and exercises to develop timing, proper reaction, balance, strength, stamina, situational awareness and officer confidence.

The Advanced Ground Control and Survival program is designed to build on the 6240 Control Defensive Tactics Instructor course utilizing advanced control management, angles and more advanced techniques. The advanced course will introduce more drilling that will assist the student in understanding and implementing transitions from one skill to the other.  This will assist the student to keep several steps ahead of the subject if one technique fails. Controlling the subject to make an arrest by utilizing proper tactics is paramount for the safety of all parties involved.

The purpose of the Advanced Impact/Edged Weapons Training 24-hour block is to build on C/DT 6240 and give the trainer/practitioner a more in-depth curriculum to improve awareness, technical skill, and teaching ability for a higher level of understanding and functionality for the use and defense of impact, edged and improvised weapons. The Advanced Impact Training Block curriculum incorporates progressions and drills for:

• Identifying and applying common angles of attack.
• Identifying the different weapon ranges for long, middle and close techniques.
• Understanding the primary concepts of baton with supplemental tools (shield, flashlight).
• Intermediate and advanced level defensive structure for the specific ranges for both impact and edged weapons.
• Zoning and angling theory to safely apply and defend against impact and edged weapons.
• Integration of primary personal striking skills with impact tools (baton, flashlight).
• Integration of primary control techniques with an impact weapon.
• Transition and Flow drills to modulate force and apply lower or higher force, safely, securely and efficiently while integrating dynamic movement of angles, deflections, control holds, locks and strips.

The Advanced Police Judo Course will build on the principles introduced in the Use of Force Control and Defensive Tactics Course (6240 UOF/CDT). With an understanding of the concepts introduced in 6240, this advanced course will broaden the instructor’s knowledge and ability related to the disruption of a suspect’s posture, base, and structure to leverage that subject, and gain a position of advantage over them using the least amount of force necessary to affect an arrest. With the safety of all involved parties in mind, instructors will be exposed to various entry techniques, trips, and reaping skills designed to limit the amount of force necessary to effectively take an individual into custody. Advanced Police Judo topics will include:

• Additional entries and opportunities for the underhook series.
• Countering and hand fighting against underhooks, bear hugs and leg grabs.
• Additional trip and reap techniques.
• Introduction to leg grabs and headlock techniques.
• Teach backs and student demonstrations.

This is an intensive 24-hour course that will cover weapon retention, gun disarming, and jamming. This Force Option’s Class will include low level contacts where a subject draws a concealed weapon. Team tactics will be stressed and well as single officer tactics. Retention/Disarms tactics include handgun, rifle and taser/less lethal tools.

Gulla’s Weapon Retention and Positional Shooting, better known as G – W.R.A.P.S., is so effective it has been adopted by Rener Gracie’s GST System. This course teaches you how to maintain control of your firearm in your holster, in your hand, on the ground, and from other such difficult positions.

This course will use concepts and principles to protect your firearm that can be employed and practiced against someone who is really trying to take your gun. You will learn how to shoot within grappling range and keep the suspect from controlling your weapon.  These techniques have been tested both in training and proven on the street in life and death situations. The student will use NLT SIRT Training Weapons and Simunition/UTM Training Rounds.

The course is the foundation for Control/Defensive Tactics (C/DT) and Use of Force (UOF) for Law Enforcement Officers. This course includes the basics of motor learning, practice structure, class structure, and skill instruction. This comprehensive and practical course will help each new instructor develop the skills and confidence to assist in all the essential C/DT and UOF classes taught at the Basic Law Enforcement Academy (BLEA) and in-service training incorporating current Job Task Analysis (JTA) findings and recommendations.

Law enforcement officers are on the frontline of the fentanyl and drug overdose crisis, yet pipelines of accurate drug testing information rarely make it to this important group.

This training will:

• Describe the different methods of drug testing, including law enforcement drug testing
• Review the strengths and limitations of these different data sources
• Explain current drug supply trends in WA State
• Finally, a Washington State Trooper and Drug Recognition Expert will discuss why it is important for law enforcement to have the most accurate and recent drug supply information.

90-min training focused on the critical coordination of response systems to effectively support the most vulnerable members of our communities. This heightened stability not only enhances safety, health, and equity but also reduces barriers to community-based alternatives to incarceration and prosecution for individuals affected by unmanaged substance use, mental health challenges, or severe poverty.

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

• Recognize options for alternative responses that are available, how to engage them to support individuals experiencing behavioral health issues that arrest alone cannot improve.

• Understand how the LEAD model of system coordination and response to public safety and public order issues arising from behavioral health and poverty has become a deeper part of WA State policy.

• Articulate how implementation of the LEAD model is creating opportunities for connection and coordination within communities and between jurisdictions weaving together the beginning of a stronger and more responsive safety net.