Email Print Police Chief Sylvia Moir said it helps officers make smarter decisions in the field and allows them to be more thoughtful of other perspectives in tense situations

By PoliceOne Staff

TEMPE, Ariz. Police departments are developing new ways to help officers decompress from the stresses of the job. One agency in Arizona is using meditation as a part of officer development.

Tempe Police Chief Sylvia Moir told ABC News that encouraging her officers to mediate has helped them respond, not react in tense situations.

Without a doubt I think the [meditation] practice shows promise, getting us to be present, not take triggers, not take the bait that makes us react and if the practice can get us to see the perspective of another to enhance our compassion, then I think it does lend itself to broader application in policing, she said.

Moir has instilled the meditation practice in officer training and told ABC that its important for officers to be as tactically sound as they are physically fit. She believes it helps officers slow their mind in the field and make smarter decisions.

Were really good at I call them perishable skills, the shooting, driving, defensible tactics, she said. And what were doing with mindfulness practices is were saying, Look, were going to give you a set of tools, you take it, you use it for the whole you, personal and professional, make it what works for you.

Meditation has helped Moir realize microcues she may send unintentionally when shes at a scene.

I meet with people who are suffering, who dont feel like they have been served by the justice system ... with family members who have lost someone, [with] officers that have done wrong and Im holding them accountable, she said. Its in those moments where I have to really engage but also listen.

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Police chief: Meditation key part of officer development - Police News