Hudson County Executive Orders New Diversity Training Course For Law Enforcement Personnel

In the wake of the nationwide outrage over the senseless death of George Floyd by a Minneapolis Police officer, and the demand for police reforms to de-escolate tensions and create greater understanding by law enforcement when dealing with African Americans and other minority groups, Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise has signed an Executive Order demanding new, training courses be made available for police personnel.

DeGise signed the order on Monday.  The new course will be available to every law enforcement agency in Hudson County.  It will address numerous issues, including the proper mode of behavior and amount of force police are allowed to use when encountering protestors or others expressing their right to freedom of speech, as well as the way police are expected to handle de-escalation when arresting suspects, demonstrators or other citizens.

Hudson County already offers law enforcement personnel public safety training.  The new diversity and de-escalation course will be designed by the county’s Public Safety Training Center.  It will not be required that officers in the county’s different law enforcement agencies take the course, only that it be offered.  It will be up to the different police departments and agencies in Hudson County to decide if their officers take the training.