Law enforcement in Los Angeles is looking for a gunman who ambushed two sheriff's deputies over the weekend. Surveillance video shows the shooter walk up to the patrol car and fire several rounds, leaving both deputies in critical condition. Officers in Washoe County say the incident is troubling.

"It's obviously disheartening," Officer Tasheeka Claiborne, Reno Police Department said. "We do everything that we can to put our lives second to the community that we choose to serve."

"It's more than watching that attack on someone in our profession but also thinking of what that means for their families, for their coworkers," Deputy James Davis, Washoe County Sheriff's Office said.

The officers say they go through continual training to prepare for the unknown. Davis says he knows what he signed up for when he became a cop but that the high tension throughout the country is harder on his family.

"I have the ability to deal with people who don't like me and people who are unhappy with my profession. Our teenagers don't," Davis said. "The damage that is done by the perception that every cop is out there and is bad is devastating for our children."

Davis says he knows there are a lot of people who are mad or afraid of law enforcement officers. That is why he says it is important to have positive experiences with people.

"It might be their worst day they've ever experienced in their life and so to have the positive interactions with us, the lower stress interactions with us and us with the community is crucial," Davis said.

Law enforcement in the Truckee Meadows put a lot of effort into community policing, where officers go into the community to get to know their neighbors.

"If we just take the time and the effort to know the people that we're serving, I think it would reduce a lot of the issues of feeling afraid to talk to police," Claiborne said.

Officers say communication is the key to a positive outcome. They say using force against someone is the last thing they want to do.

"Very rarely does it ever call for any force," Claiborne said. "About 90-95 percent of our contacts with people are resolved with just verbal communication."

Davis says one of the first things they learn during law enforcement training is to be aware of their surroundings. The Reno Police Department and Washoe County Sheriff's Office typically have one officer for each patrol car. They can also put two officer in one car if the situation calls for it. They rarely go to an incident alone.

"Officers usually respond to calls with two officers on-scene and that's how we eliminate a lot of issues," Claiborne said.

Newer cars also have more safety features than older ones.

"Some of the newer ones have bullet-proof paneling in the doors," Claiborne said. "They have bullet resistant glass. Some of the vehicles even have motion alerts so if someone's in the general area, it will give us a little alert and a sound."

Davis says he knows what the dangers are as an officer and that there is always the possibility that he will not come home from work. Tensions may be high between some people and law enforcement but he says there is also a lot of positivity.

"The comforting part is that there is so much support from the vast number of people," Davis said.

Both hope tensions drop sooner than later. In the meantime, they say it is important to stay vigilant and look out for their colleagues. Davis says deputies have briefings every day to look at incidents that have happened in other parts of the country, and discuss how they would have handled the situation.

 

 

 

 

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