Police Driving & Pursuit Practices Expert

Specialties & Experience of this Expert Witness

Additional Information

I served as a law enforcement officer for the Henrico County Police Division for 33 years. I held a variety of positions during my career which included: Patrol Officer, Street Crimes Investigator, Narcotics Investigator, Community Policing Officer, Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant, Patrol Sergeant, Criminal Investigations Sergeant (Special Victims Unit), Field Training Sergeant, Field Training Coordinator, Training Academy Sergeant and the Assistant Training Director. I was certified as a Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) General Instructor, Firearms Instructor in 1987, and Emergency Vehicle Operator Course (EVOC) Instructor in 1996. I also served as the Henrico County Police Division’s Chief Instructor in Emergency Vehicle Operations from 2004 to 2017 when I retired. I was recertified as a General Instructor and EVOC Instructor in 2020 with Chesterfield County Police. I currently serve as the Training Coordinator for the Virginia Division of Capitol Police. During my time with the Henrico County Police Division, I developed lesson plans and provided training in various subjects, to audiences both internal and external to law enforcement, on topics such as: Defensive Driving, Skid Control, Pursuit Driving, Civil Liability, Pursuit Management for Officers and Supervisors, Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT), Roadblocks, Firearms, Special Purpose Vehicles, Leadership Development, Personal Safety, Home Security, and Field Training Preparation. I have assisted with documentation for pursuits, the Annual Pursuit Report, policy creation, updates and changes. I have remained current in my field by attending topic related courses sponsored by police departments throughout the State of Virginia as well as recertifying as an instructor through DCJS as required. I also ensured compliance with the DCJS standards for Academy recertification, and with both the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) and Virginia Law Enforcement Professional Standards Commission (VLEPSC) accreditation and reaccreditation processes. I have instructed numerous EVOC classes for basic police academies, officer in-service training, and citizens police academies for the Henrico County Police Division, Chesterfield County Police, and the Crater Criminal Justice Training Academy (CCJTA). I have attended numerous law enforcement and leadership development classes on topics to include pursuits, pursuit decision making, pursuit management, PIT, roadblocks, Skid Car, Stinger, Stop Stick, civil liability, as well as training in terrorism, crisis response, crisis intervention, active shooter, threat consideration, and incident command (NIMS IS-700 and ICS300). I have attended many state and regional pursuit and training meetings and worked with other agencies to improve training and develop inter-agency pursuit policy. I developed the Henrico Police Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT) Training as well as the transition training from rear wheel drive vehicles to front wheel drive vehicles (Ford Crown Victoria to Ford Taurus and Explorer). I developed training for all Henrico County Police Division’s Specialty Vehicles to include: 40- and 30-foot Mobile Command Posts, Bomb Truck, SWAT Armored Car, Forensics Truck, and Trailer Towing. At the Chesterfield County Police Academy, I assisted with EVOC training for police recruits, officer in-service, and police service aides. I also assisted in the development of Chesterfield County Police’s PIT training. At CCJTA, I assist with police recruit driver training and pursuit response. Since 2007, I have been consulted by a number of law firms on police pursuit cases. I have been recognized as a Subject Matter Expert in the Circuit Court of the County of Roanoke and have successfully provided written opinions and testimony in depositions and at trial.