Your Online Leadership and Ethics in Policing Course is filled with more than 12 hours of instruction, activities and exercises designed to help you grow and succeed in your role.

Designed for the busy working professional, each lesson is divided into 5-10 bite sized “topics” that can be completed in 10-20 minutes each.

Here are the major topics we cover in this course.

Introduction and Getting Started

This Introductory session will help establish common ethical ground on which to build a top-notch law enforcement or public safety agency that serves as an example of personal character and professional integrity. Lasting solutions to organizational problems come when officers and employees internalize positive character traits.

Coactive Policing

Coactive policing is a philosophy, not a program. Crime is a community problem that demands a community solution. The power for effective change rests within the agency’s relationship with the citizens it serves. In this session, officers learn how to tap into the power of community relationships and focus it on solving the underlying problems that manifest themselves in criminality.

The Dynamics of Character

Character is the seed that produces the fruit of high achievement. Most police training programs focus on competencies (behavior, performance, achievement), yet most of our problems stem from a lack of character. Establishing standards around character is the first step to building trust in the community, encouraging high standards, strengthening internal relationships, and improving both morale and performance.

The Dynamic of Authority

This dynamic is the cornerstone of the Police Dynamics program. Faithfully representing authorities and remaining under their protection is key to avoiding negative consequences, infusing trust into relationships, affecting positive change inside and outside the walls of the agency, generating voluntary compliance with the law, overcoming resistance without force, and avoiding ethical failures.

The Dynamic of Restoration

Restoring renegade officers may be our greatest leadership challenge. Most officers agree that the majority of their work-related stress stems from unhealthy internal relationships. Unresolved conflicts can result in hurt, depression, anger, and jealousy that undermine internal discipline and agency effectiveness. The integration of specific character qualities is necessary to restore renegade officers and stabilize internal relationships.

The Dynamic of Discretion

One of the more powerful tools available to the executive branch is the discretionary use of authority. However, much of our discretion has been limited by legislation or judicial rulings because we have used it in an unjust manner. In this dynamic, we explore the judicious exercise of police authority and how to make discretionary decisions based on the principles of good character.

The Dynamic of Compliance

In this dynamic, learn how to generate voluntary compliance through words. Physical force is often utilized prematurely resulting in liability, officer injury, disciplinary action, and other negative consequences. A professional standard of conduct exists to protect officers while overcoming the subject’s natural inclinations to resist authority. By following this standard, you will become more effective in all three of the deadly arenas: the streets, the courts, and the media.

The Dynamic of Interposition

It's well recognized in the police profession that a senior officer has a duty to intervene when a subordinate officer becomes abusive towards a citizen or suspect. But what if the offending officer outranks him? Does the junior officer have a duty to intervene in order to protect the citizen? The answer is a resounding "yes!" The justification for doing so is found in a long-standing legal principle called the Interposition of the Lesser Magistrate. In this session, we will explore the rationale behind the doctrine and how to exercise it in the midst of a crisis.

Wrapping Up

In this section, we'll bring all the pieces of the puzzle together and show how the different dynamics fit together.

Ray Nash

Ray Nash began his 40-year law enforcement career as a police dispatcher while he was still in high school. After a time as a patrolman and street supervisor, he was appointed Police Chief in Irmo, South Carolina at the tender age of 23. Later, he served as a Training Specialist with the Institute of Police Technology and Management (I.P.T.M.) at the University of North Florida, then returned to S.C. for his second tenure as a Police Chief, this time in Summerville.

In 1997, Ray began the first of his three terms as the elected Sheriff in Dorchester County, SC. After retiring in 2009, he pursued an overseas mission for over three years in support of the international police reform effort in Afghanistan. He served as a Professional Police Mentor to the Ministry of Interior, the Criminal Justice Advisor for the US Embassy in Kabul, and the Professional Development Director for the International Police Coordination Board.

As CEO and founder of the Police Dynamics Institute, Sheriff Nash has provided consulting services and leadership training to over 15,000 police officers, government officials, and business leaders from around the world. Agencies that have adopted the principles of Police Dynamics have reported lower crime rates, higher morale, enhanced officer performance, and reductions in ethical failures and complaints.

In 2018, Sheriff Nash, co-founded the Inductive Interview System, a non-linear, non-coercive approach to forensic interviewing for the law enforcement/public safety and mental health professions.