# Training female officers



## Drac (Feb 1, 2008)

So here is a good topic for LEO trainers..How do you train your female charges?? I've read where some instructors attempt to only partner females with other females...What if there are no other females in your class???


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## redfang (Feb 1, 2008)

In defensive tactics training, females are encouraged to train with big, burly males. Actually, we try to mix it up so that everyone trains with a variety of partners. So females will train w/ females, but also males. The smallest males will be put in with the largest males etc.


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## redfang (Feb 1, 2008)

Oh, and most female recruits that I've seen want the males to train just as hard with them as with other males. They get irritated if they perceive people holding back. This is good practice as most criminals are not going to hold back because they are female.


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## Drac (Feb 1, 2008)

redfang said:


> Oh, and most female recruits that I've seen want the males to train just as hard with them as with other males. They get irritated if they perceive people holding back. This is good practice as most criminals are not going to hold back because they are female.


 
Very well said..We do the females an injustice by taking it easy on them, the street thugs will not take it easy on them..I don't mean they should be pounded on non-stop, but they should be provided with enough resistance to they know their techniques will work if called upon to use them..


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## kidswarrior (Feb 1, 2008)

I'm not an LEO and actually interact more with probation officers, but they carry, wear vests, all the usual bells and whistles . So an observation from the other end of things: many of the juveniles on probation whom I work with all day are more afraid of female PO's than male. So that tells me it's attitude and training, not size. Am wondering if this holds true for actual LE also? And to go back to Drac's question, how do they get that attitude and training?


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## Drac (Feb 1, 2008)

kidswarrior said:


> So that tells me it's attitude and training, not size. Am wondering if this holds true for actual LE also? And to go back to Drac's question, how do they get that attitude and training?


 
No, most of the female LEO's get a lot MORE crap cause some guys are not going to listen to some ***** in a uniform...Attitude is also a VERY IMPORTANT tool..


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## kailat (Feb 1, 2008)

exactly its helpful to those female counterparts that they pair w/ male counterparts for training.  Sometimes its uncomfortable and it should be.  I know many female officers that are just tough as nails...

 On the other hand i've seen a few that are dainty as cloth as well..LOL

so its best to focus alot on the female if they are in your training class.  I like to use women as much as possible for demo etc.. this helps them understand the brute mentality from a males perspective.  It's always good for a woman is sometimes more flexible than men in many cases so, when you demo on a female vs. a male you'll find valuable and unvaluable tools to work with.


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## Tez3 (Feb 1, 2008)

I don't see it as any different from normal martial arts training. Rather than concentrate on the gender it's more often useful to concentrate on the size and strength of the student. There's many techniques that are more useful to smaller people than the big people who can often rely on strength though often you have to be careful about that if you are subsequently going to be accused of using inappropriate force. Training should be as individual as you can manage not divided along gender lines, I have known a lot of men whose fear of violence was actually greater than womens is perceived to be.
My biggest weapon believe it or not, especially in this day and age is that most shifts I wear my uniform skirt and shoes rather than trousers and boots. I'm in a position where I can do this obviously not every female is. When dealing with drunken soldiers it's useful to remind them I'm female and of an age with their mums (this leads to other problems as I then end up having them cry on me and listening to their experiences in the wars etc as well as helping out with personal problems not part of my job description but I'm happy to do it) I don't or very rarely deal with civilians where you can't rely on discipline kicking in. I have to say too I can if necessary kick much easier in a skirt lol. 
My pet hate? Dealing with drunk females!


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## Drac (Feb 1, 2008)

Tez3 said:


> My pet hate? Dealing with drunk females!


 
Yes, drunken females are a *real pain*..Not as bad as drunken sons or daughters of police officers...They believe that are above the law...*WRONG!!!!*


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## Tez3 (Feb 1, 2008)

Drac said:


> Yes, drunken females are a *real pain*..Not as bad as drunken sons or daughters of police officers...They believe that are above the law...*WRONG!!!!*


 
Ah, we have a certain breed of army officers who are like that! They are still in the Napoleonic times (their ancestors founded the regiment) and are a nightmare to deal with. They are mostly in the old cavalry regiments, so rich they have a private income (still required for officers in some regts) and are always accompanied by at least 2 gundogs. they tend to get shot when the regiment is on active service. I know one Colonel who was killed this way in the Falklands war,he was leading a charge that would have lead to a masscre due to his arrogance so his soldiers 'sorted it'. he got a medal of course and is hailed a hero but most of us know the truth.

Sorry... thread hijack!


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## tellner (Feb 1, 2008)

They'll have to deal with drunk, angry, and combative men sometimes all three in the same person. They need to be comfortable jamming with men at close quarters. Most women by training or nature - take your pick I don't want to get into any religious discussions - unconsciously defer to or are reluctant to take up space when it conflicts with men, especially larger stronger ones. I wish it weren't true. It's changing. But it's still a factor. If they can get past this in training it will help them to be more effective officers and may save their lives.

One thing I've seen with a distressing number of male police officers is a thinly veiled contempt for female cops. Again, it's certainly better than it was twenty years ago, but it's still an issue in many departments, and sometimes it goes all the way to the top. A culture like that is destructive to good policing and makes the female officer's job much more difficult. As a trainer you have an excellent opportunity to change that by treating the students fairly and not tolerating trainees who abuse their female training partners any more than you would ones who do the same thing for racial or religious reasons. The body doesn't lie. If they are especially rough or aggressive with female training partners in particular - and you know exactly what I mean - it will reinforce that habit in the rest of their careers. If they train hard but honestly with them it will help break that pattern and do the Department and law enforcement in general a long term favor whose worth can not be overestimated.


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## Tez3 (Feb 1, 2008)

One of the joys of working with the forces for me is when I work with the RAF (I'm ex RAF myself) where women have been in since it's inception in 1918 therefore the men are historically used to women doing the same jobs as them. However the army is very different and women can be treated badly. We often have ex army people join us and sometimes they cannot or will not open their eyes to the fact that they treat female co workers badly. More often than not they are very condescending and this is more marked whenever physical training is done. The concept of women as 'girlies' is one they won't let go of.


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