TRAINING STATION
NEW JERSEY COPS ■ JULY 2014
63
Products, Services, Classes and Seminars for On The Job
Let’s stay Below 100
For the past few years, the term “Below 100”
has become commonplace within the law
enforcement community. Below 100 is a training program that focuses on some of the basic
issues in the hopes of keeping officer deaths
below 100. In 2012, there were 125 police offiin
were 105 police
Bill Fearon cers killed andFor 2013 there this publication,
officers killed.
2014, as of
Training
there have been 53 police officers killed in the
Adviser
line duty so far, which is up 10 percent compared to last year. There have been 19 police
officers killed by a firearm, which is up 19 percent, and there have been 25 police officers killed in motor
vehicle crashes, which is up 39 percent.
The Below 100 program works off of five tenets:
1. Wear your seatbelt,
2. Wear your vest,
3. Watch your speed,
4. WIN (What’s Important Now?), and
5. Complacency kills
If you go to the website, www.below100.com, you will see
many articles that provide safety tips in hopes of getting police
officers to focus on basic issues to lower police officer deaths.
There are also training events scheduled throughout the year in
various locations.
As a police officer, is it easy to feel like you are invincible.
We drive marked police cars with lights and sirens, we are
allowed to drive fast and break other traffic laws, we carry
guns and other equipment designed to hurt people, we wear
a uniform that identifies us as a knight is shining armor and
we are able to take actions that will deny the public of certain
rights. Yes, a police officer has great power in society, but let’s
remember what Ben Parker said to his nephew Peter Parker,
a.k.a. Spiderman: “With great power comes great responsibility.”
YOU are responsible for coming home after your shift to
your family; YOU are responsible for not damaging the reputation of your uniform; YOU are responsible for what the
public perception is of police officers; YOU are responsible for
properly training yourself with every single tool on your tool
belt; and YOU are responsible to train yourself properly to win
any encounter that you may face.
It is said over and over again in the world of sports, business, war and any other profession that you can think of:
Focus on the little things. Just watch any ESPN special before
the Superbowl, World Series, Stanley Cup Finals or NBA
Championship; you will see interviews with players and
coaches and you will hear that focusing on the little things is
what got their team to the championships.
The Below 100 project focuses on the little things. Our profession is a dangerous one; make no mistake about that. We
go against the worst of what society has to offer at all hours of
the day and night. I think we all hope that the Below 100 project can become the Zero project some day.
Stay Safe. d
Bill Fearon is a training supervisor for the New Jersey State Police,
a firearms instructor at the Woodland Park Shooting Range and
the founder and owner of the training company, No Games Gear.
For more information, log on to www.nogamesgear.com.