A Florida police department is giving the public a small taste of what it's like to work a shift as an officer.
Touting it as a "behind the badge virtual experience," the North Miami Police Department is inviting citizens to try out the agency's MILO Range police simulator, WPLG-TV reports. The first open session was Thursday.
“They can come in and see things from an officer’s perspective they get to go through a similar type training and get to make a split second decision,” Maj. Kessler Brooks told the news outlet.
Sessions with the simulator are open to North Miami residents and business owners who are 19 years old and older. The department plans to hold monthly events with the simulator for the public.
In a new age of transparency, the department hopes that time on the simulator will show citizens just how unpredictable and frantic situations can be for officers. For officers, the simulator is a controlled environment that allows them to sharpen their training, especially when it comes to cooling down hot situations.
“Our hope is when training these officers is they learn valuable de-escalation techniques,” said Brooks.
