May 2025. BLUES Vo. 41 No. 5

an imminent threat of

an imminent threat of death orserious bodily injury.”There was an imminent threatof death or great bodily injury.Therefore, there was no violationof department use of forcepolicy.CONCLUSIONThe use of deadly force was notin violation of state law, withindepartment policy, and objectivelyreasonable.A suggestion that officers deployless lethal force, wait to seeif effective, and then evaluate theneed for deadly force is not unreasonable.It is just not requiredunder the law or departmentpolicy.Still. I struggle with the fencethat separated Perez from theofficers. Let’s evaluate this issuefurther.THAT F*CKING FENCEIf that fence were not in betweenpolice officers and Perez- this would be an obviouslyreasonable use of deadly force.There would be zero question.So, just how much weightshould be put on the presence ofa fence?• How far away was Perezfrom then fence?• Less than 10 feet.• How long would it take theaverage person to reach thefence?• 1-2 seconds.• How long would it take theaverage person to climb/scalethe fence?• 1-2 seconds.Therefore, the time/distancebetween Perez and police wasapproximately 3-4 seconds. Perezwas 3-4 seconds away fromhaving the ability to deliver adeadly attack upon officers.18 The BLUES - MAY ‘25So, the question is: How closedo police officers have to allow adeadly threat to get to them?1 second? 3 feet? Obviously not.*Also, if Perez had turned hisattention towards the individualsthat he had just been trying tostab (who were only a few feetaway from him) the fence wouldhave made it more difficult forpolice officers to render aid oreffect an arrest.**And, Perez had the ability tothrow the knife at the officers- which would be considered adeadly threat.HOW DO WE…Reasonable people will quicklymove past the initial itch tosolely blame the police officers.Even if this use of force incidentwas objectively reasonable -the outcome is still awful andwe should all want somethingdifferent for future similar scenarios.Police departments (includingthe Pocatello Police Department)are staffed with crisis intervention(CIT) certified officers. Somelarger agencies have mentalhealth crisis teams - where a CITofficer and a mental health counselorrespond as a team (oncea situation is safe). However, ifpolice dispatch is not providedthe information that an incidentinvolves a mental health crisis -there is no way for those speciallytrained officers/teams to bedispatched.If a person is in the throes of amental health crisis and armed,here are some suggestions:1. Call the police and request aCIT officer.2. (Try to) ensure that everyoneelse is safely away from danger.a. If police arrive on scene andperceive an imminent threat tolife - they will act in accordanceto their training and attempt tostop the threat.3. Trying to intervene in betweenpolice and a man with aknife is a bad idea.a. Police do not know the intimatedynamics that exist withinevery family and may use forceto protect.b. The less people on scene thatmay be injured by a knife-wieldingsuspect - the more energyand focus the police can puttowards de-escalation.What you think is helpfulintervention is really distractinginterference.FINAL THOUGHTSThe goal is to avoid outcomeslike this. Every serious discussionshould include this principle.Solely blaming the police islazy and dishonestWhen an armed individual witha knife aggressively advancestowards police officers whilerefusing to follow commands -this puts the officers in an awfulposition. They can be stabbedwithin a few seconds or havethe weapon thrown at them inan instant. The notion that policeofficers will not respond toan imminent deadly threat withdeadly force is juvenile.The fence is not a magic barrier- it represents 3-4 seconds.Think about that.CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE

HARRIS COUNTY, TX. – The HarrisCounty Sheriff’s Office confirmedthat two deputies, Christina Kohlerand retired deputy Maria Vasquez,died by suicide in separate incidents,Click2Houston reported.Kohler died on March 13, with theHarris County Office of the MedicalExaminer confirming her death asa suicide. Vasquez died March 16 inMontgomery, according to the report.The deaths highlight the ongoingneed for mental health support forfirst responders, according to thereport. Dr. Ron Acierno, director ofthe Trauma and Resilience Center atUTHealth Houston, emphasized theimportance of breaking the stigmaaround seeking help.“Much like the veteran communityand the active-duty community, theidea is to tough it out. Or whetherit’s due to the fact that they justdidn’t know the help was available,or didn’t think it could help,” Aciernosaid.The UTHealth Trauma and ResilienceCenter (TRC) is a multidis-ciplinary treatment, research, andeducation center devoted to helpingpeople who are experiencing psychologicalproblems in the aftermathof traumatic life experiences.We offer home-telemedicine, evidence-based,trauma-focused carefor patients struggling with complextrauma, post-traumatic stressdisorder (PTSD) and trauma-relatedbehavioral health conditions. Ourteam of expert clinicians and staffserve veterans and their families,first responders and their families,elder abuse and domestic violencesurvivors, and people impacted bydisasters, severe accidents and othertraumatic events directly in theirhomes via telemedicine on yourcomputer, phone, tablet or otherdevice.As part of the UT PhysiciansPsychiatry Outpatient Clinic, wewere established to address theseincreasing needs, while improvingaccessibility to resources in ourThe BLUES - MAY ‘25 19