Page 43 - TPA Journal May - June 2018

These classifications receive extra attention because of the increased need for courtroom testimony.
However, this sort of training is not universally required and there is no consensus on the curriculum.

Consequently, the responsibility for training remains with largely with the municipalities to meet the
standards of City of Canton v. Harris for developing and administering the training past the initial

recruit level.

This court case dealt specifically with jailers and their supervisors. However, its lessons can
easily be applied to any specialized assignment in law enforcement. Officers must learn the requisite

skills of their new assignment and operate within the recognized standards of the profession. They

must apply these skills within the established guidelines of the legal system. They must learn the
innovations in their field and demonstrate an ability to perform the associated skills. Whether the new

job title is jailer, SWAT officer, evidence technician, or narcotics investigator, the principle of City of

Canton v. Harris remains the same: it is incumbent on the management of an organization to ensure
that its employees receive the continuously needed training that is required to perform their designated

duties and to maintain their assignments in that specific job classification. During the court
proceedings it was shown that it was agency policy for the supervisor to determine the need for

medical attention. It was also shown that there was no instruction for this job responsibility. Without a

specific curriculum provided by the state law enforcement regulatory agency, it becomes the
responsibility of the municipality to identify the specific training goals and learning objectives, define

the acceptable levels of performance, and provide the means in terms of qualified instructional
personnel, equipment, and facilities. Most importantly, the agency should provide the release time

from regular duties to attend the training sessions. For a police administrator to base training decisions

solely on a financial basis is deliberately indifferent to the substantive needs of needs of the personnel.
The monetary cost of relevant training is far exceeded by the failure to provide it.

1 Every person, who under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom or usage, of any State or Territory, subjects or
causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or any person within the jurisdiction thereof, the deprivation of any
rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law,
suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress.

Author Biography: Dr. Mijares has been on the faculty at Texas State University since 1990
when he retired from the Detroit Police Department. He spent his most career as a supervisor
on the Special Response (SWAT) team while simultaneously earning his Ph.D. from the
University of Michigan

March/April 2018 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • 866-997-8282 39