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46 l LAW OFFICER MAGAZINE l July/August 2005 Request your charter subscription: www.lawofficermagazine

BY JOHN T. MEYER, JR.

LOW-LIGHT

TRAINING

LOW-LIGHT

TRAINING

Not just a shot in the dark

DD uring a recent meeting of Team One Networkinstructors, more than 20 of us spent time discussinglow-light training, which we agreed is a critical butsometimes short-changed component of officer-sur-vival courses. What follows summarizes what wediscussed, our conclusions about how to enhancelow-light training and current doctrine dealing withweapon-mounted lights.

Training Truths We discovered many of us have been teaching low-

light techniques for years. Most started with the FBItechnique (shown above) and then progressed to theHarries (see photos, p. 48). These days, there aremore than eight versions of flashlight techniqueswith many names, but we agreed that no matter howmany techniques you try, you must find the one ortwo that work best for you and stick with theminstead of introducing new techniques every time

you train. While instructors must know all of thetechniques in order to offer various options to theirtrainees, those officers must find what works bestfor them and then practice that technique or tech-niques until they are proficient. Just like shootingskills, consistency and reinforcement are positiveand critical factors in officer-survival training.Officers who survive deadly encounters do sobecause they fight the way theyve been trained.

We also agreed on another issue: As instructors,we must do more that just teach flashlight-shooting

techniques. We must teach officers how to operatein low-light conditions, and how to use light anddarkness, shadow, silhouette and even shock andawe to gain the tactical advantage. While knowinghow to shoot a gun with a flashlight is certainly anecessary survival tool, the officer operates in low-light conditions far more than they shoot in low-light conditions.

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TO REGISTER FOR A CLASS,PLEASE CONTACT:Team One Network

Patsey Drew-Rios,Training Coordinator711 Avondale DriveSterling, VA 20164Ofce: 703.421.2970Fax: 703.444.5354Email: pat@teamonenetwork.com

TO HOST OR SCHEDULE ACLASS, PLEASE CONTACT:Team One Network

John T. Meyer, Jr.620 Richards Ferry RdFredericksburg, VA 22406Phone Number: 540.752.8190Fax Number: 540.752.8192E-mail: john@teamonenetwork.comWeb: www.teamonenetwork.com

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Request your charter subscription: www.lawofficermagazine.com July/August 2005 l LAW OFFICER MAGAZINE l 47

Weapon-Mounted LightsIn a recent PoliceOne.com survey, nearly half of the

more than 1,100 officers polled worked in agenciesthat allowed the use of weapon-mounted lights.Heres our take on these tools: The gun-mountedlight enhances an officers ability to identify andengage a target if the officer has justification/reasonto draw their gun in the first place. A gun-mountedlight is not an illumination tool; consider it an ele-ment of a law-enforcement weapons system.

With that in mind, we strongly recommend thatofficers who install lights designed to mount on a

pistol purchase a holster to accommodate the pistolwith the light attached. (The PoliceOne.com pollfound that roughly 40 percent of the officers polledwho used a weapons-mounted light carried a holsterthat allowed the light to remain on the handgun.)Many manufacturers make such duty holsters.

We dont contradict manufacturerspoliciesalways verify the weapon is

LIGHTS ON-AND-OFF DEMOPosition one half of the students insidethe classroom looking out a window,

and the other half outside.Turn the lights on in classroom,with no lights outside;Turn the lights on in classroom,with lights on outside;Turn the lights off in classroom,with lights on outside; andTurn the lights off in classroom,with the lights off outside.

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: If you are in adarker environment than youradversaries,its harder for them to see

you than vice versa.

PATROL CAR DEMO Students should observe what theofficer looks like in the car:

With the interior light on (white);With the overhead light on (red);With a laptop computer or MDT on;Holding a lit cigarette lighter;Holding a live cell phone;With the headlights on and off;With the overheads on and off;Holding a live penlight orstylus light; andAs the vehicle approaches usingdifferent lighting techniques todistract.

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: It doesnt takemuch to light you up,but light shining in

your adversarys eyes will make a hugedifference in what they can see and howthey react.

SEARCH DRILLS Students take turns searching and observing inside a room. During the

search, students should be able toidentify guns and other items.

Scenarios should include:Constant-on flashlight;Flashing and moving;Painting and moving;Door backlighting;Strobe lights;Offensive light use; and aHall drill (moving behind an intense,high-powered light).

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: The studentsshould learn how to observe,how touse light intermittently, how to move andhow to search for cover,and they shouldlearn the pros and cons of these differenttechniques.

KIMS GAMESI learned these drills from sniper-instruc-tor schools. Students must identify objects and colors under time and illumi-nation pressures.They must identify objects held by the instructor from 1520

yards by using a flash or paint technique

from behind cover.We use the 1520 yard range because its the maximum effectiverange for most tactical flashlights. TeamOne Instructor John Zamrok says,Youcant outshoot your light,which means

you must always be able to identify your target. Students should make IDs from thefollowing positions:

Straight on (using only the flashlight);With the suspect backlit;With the suspect side-lit at 90-degreeangle; andWith one student off-center withanother student opposite of center(using only the flashlights).

They should try to identify thefollowing items:

A handgun,stainless;A blue or red handgun;

A screwdriver or knife;A baseball bat;A long gun;A flashlight;A badge;A rubber hose;A wallet;andA spray can.

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: The studentsshould learn how difficult it is to identifyobjects and colors under stress withoutproper light,and how additional lightsources and the use of angles make thesituation easier.

LOW-LIGHT DRILLSHow do you teach those survival skills? Below, Ive listed some low-light training non-shooting drills that will help

your officers lear n how to make light an ally through guide d discovery. By giving students a sce narioputting them inthe middle of a situationthe officers get pr actical experience while discovering on their own what works best forthem. The key: Instruct the officers to observe the effects of light from numerous perspectives so they learn how tomake effective use of light under real-world conditions.

We must teach

officers how touse light &darkness,shadow,

silhouette &even shock

& awe togain the tactical

advantage.

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A gun-mounted light isnot an illumination tool;

consider it an element of a law-enforcement weapons system.

P H OT O S C O URT E S Y S URE F I RE

46 l LAW OFFICER MAGAZINE l July/August 2005 Request your charter subscription: www.lawofficermagazine.com

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