The melrose police department will use FY24 safer outcomes funding to implement a VR training program to improve officer DE-escalation tactics, improve responses to mental health crises, and other…

This $153,255 Project Grant, awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) under the Public Safety Partnership and Community Policing Grants (CFDA 16.710) program, will enable the Melrose Police Department to implement a virtual reality (VR) training program. The program aims to improve officer de-escalation tactics, enhance responses to mental health crises, and manage other stressful situations, with the goal of reducing confrontations and use of force incidents between officers and community members. The comprehensive initial training and quarterly refresher courses will follow the Illinois SAFE-T Act and provide realistic scenario-based learning to help officers develop and maintain these critical skills.

The melrose police department will use FY24 safer outcomes funding to implement a VR training program to improve officer DE-escalation tactics, improve responses to mental health crises, and other stressful situations. This project will reduce the number of confrontations between community members and our officers to drastically reduce use of force incidents. The VR training and equipment will follow the illinois safe-t act and offer realistic scenarios to help officers improve their skills. The program will have initial training that is quite comprehensive and quarterly refresher courses.