High schoolers present de-escalation education projects to LAPD Police Chief Moore
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore looks on as a Dorsey High School student explains her project.
By Web Staff
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LOS ANGELES (KCAL, KCBS) — As part of their AP exam, computer science students from Dorsey High School crafted de-escalation scenarios, after they participated in the program, Building Blue Bridges.
“They went through the force option system,” said Building Blue Bridges founder Daphne Bradford. “So they had a chance to experience and see the split-second decisions that LAPD or any other law enforcement officer has to make.”
Based on what the students learned, Bradford started a competition for students to get AP credit if their police de-escalation education scenarios made it past the scrutiny of the Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore and LA School Police Chief Leslie Ramirez.
“With all the protests and de-escalation that’s necessary, I said ‘I want to hear from you, from a kid perspective,’” said Bradford. “Because you see so many young people having bad encounters with police officers making bad decisions and it can kind of go bad.”
The two police chiefs looked through the top three submissions and pick the first place winners.
“I was hoping that our project would be an example or a teaching moment for cops to see,” said team member Bryson Williams. “It’s like showing an example of what you can do instead of shooting.”
According to Moore, the students were judged not only for capturing the essence of de-escalation but also for their teamwork. He believed most importantly that the students and officers walk away with a better understanding of one another. The chief said that it was a benefit for students to understand how officers are trained and the situations they encounter.
“I’ve learned that cops have serious situations,” said Williams. “It’s stressful and takes a lot more than it seems.”
After the students shared their projects, the two police chiefs fielded questions from the curious pupils.
“It’s very important because we must have a real true 21st-century community policing and relationship building,” said Bradford.
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