Two Los Angeles police officers have been interviewing suspects arrested after standoffs to see how authorities could have handled the situation differently, the New York Times reports. They hope their research helps police end standoffs more quickly with less trouble.
The article includes an anecdote from a woman who was told to release her girlfriend during a standoff:
The use of the word “hostage” by the first officers who arrived, she told them, stunned her — her ex-girlfriend had insisted on staying and could have left at any time, she said — and it made her feel that she had no options left.
“At this point I’m thinking, there’s no going back,” Ms. Baxendale said.
