WATSONVILLE—Officers from six law agencies met at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds Tuesday through Thursday for training in how to respond to civil disobedience.

California Highway Patrol officer Dave Reed said the Mobile Field Force Disobedience course focuses on policy protocol for law enforcement officials during protests and riots, while protecting people’s rights and keeping police safe.

Classroom instruction led officers through constitutional protections such as free speech, the right to assembly and protections from unreasonable searches and seizures or immunities of citizens of the United States.

Santa Cruz area CHP Capt. Aaron Ching said he was pleased that local law enforcement agencies recognize the importance of aligning their standards. Watsonville Police, Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies, Santa Cruz Police, Morgan Hill Police and Hollister Police were in attendance.

“We want to make sure our training includes understanding how people can assemble in a safe way,” Ching said. “This is a high-visibility level of training.”

The course included roll playing, active shooter, demonstrations of group separation and other such various scenarios, Ching said.

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Tarmo Hannula has been the lead photographer with The Pajaronian newspaper in Watsonville since 1997. More recently Good Times & Press Banner. He also reports on a wide range of topics, including police, fire, environment, schools, the arts and events. A fifth generation Californian, Tarmo was born in the Mother Lode of the Sierra (Columbia) and has lived in Santa Cruz County since the late 1970s. He earned a BA from UC Santa Cruz and has traveled to 33 countries.

3 COMMENTS

  1. as someone who believes and has lived the life of a PEACEFUL civil disobedience protester , i am happy to see this exercise played out. these peace officers will be far less likely to use pepper spray, billy clubs, tasers and other weapons unless they are directly threatened. peaceful protest is how we got the USA in the first place. it is patriotic, it is an American tradition, and it is vital and necessary to keep our democracy.

    • I guess you weren’t paying attention in History class. This country came into being through an armed revolution. People fought and died. I suspect that some on your side are planning for the same thing.

  2. as someone who believes and has lived the life of a PEACEFUL civil disobedience protester , i am happy to see this exercise played out. these peace officers will be far less likely to use pepper spray, billy clubs, tasers and other weapons unless they are directly threatened. peaceful protest is how we got the USA in the first place. it is patriotic, it is an American tradition, and it is vital and necessary to keep our democracy.

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