COPS Training Portal

Welcome to the COPS Office Training Portal!
The COPS Office is a leader in developing and providing innovative training to advance community policing for all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve. The COPS Office provides numerous trainings and support materials in a variety of formats, including curricula; guidebooks; webinars; publications; conference presentations; podcasts; and videos.
The COPS Training Portal provides a convenient way for law enforcement professionals and community partners to access interactive online training in emerging public safety topics and serves as a gateway to a variety of multi-media community policing resources at no cost..
If you experience any difficulties navigating through the site or courses, please feel free to contact us by phone: 833-650-7910 or email: info@COPSTrainingPortal.org. For assistance with account creation and course enrollment, first watch these short demos: creating an account; enrolling in a course.

Available Courses and Resources

Community Policing Defined

Community Policing Defined is an interactive online course designed to provide participants with a basic awareness and understanding of the fundamental principles and best practices of community policing. Based on the Department of Justice, COPS Office publication of the same name, Community Policing Defined not only describes the practice of community policing but also examines how it can be effectively applied.

Comprised of four modules, the course explores partnerships, problem solving and organizational transformation as they relate to specific issues and challenges facing today's law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve. As such it is a valuable and appropriate training opportunity for a wide variety of law enforcement and public-safety professionals, ranging from new hires to experienced personnel, as well as community leaders, business owners and other community stakeholders.

Utilizing a blended learning approach, Community Policing Defined prompts users to actively navigate through the course's comprehensive content which includes on-screen text, graphics and narration. This design feature allows adult learners the flexibility to determine their own pace and sequence for completing the course. Although Community Policing Defined requires a minimum of 4 hours of uninterrupted run-time, participants should expect to spend between 8 and 12 hours to complete the course.

This tuition-free online training was developed by the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) and was originally supported by cooperative agreement 2009-RM-WX-K001 by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).

Community Policing Defined Syllabus.pdf

New Perspectives on Community Policing

For over three decades, the principles of community policing have been a driving force in American law enforcement. Yet for all of its past success, community policing may never have been as vital to law enforcement and the well being of our communities as it is today. New Perspectives on Community Policing is a free, web-based training course that examines how change, emerging issues, and threats are necessitating a reinvigorated commitment to the key components of community policing: community partnerships, organizational transformation, and problem solving.

The course introduces this new perspective on community policing and offers an overview of the dramatic shifts and challenges that are faced by law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve. New Perspectives on Community Policing also offers problem-solving tools, examples of successful police and community partnerships, and numerous community-policing resources.

New Perspectives on Community Policing has been developed as a modular online training that will require an absolute minimum of 4 hours to complete. However its technology-enhanced design allows participants to start, stop, and resume the training based on their schedules and the demands of the day. Flexible, interactive, and relevant, the course offers participants an outstanding opportunity to gain new insights on community policing and its role in today's complex world. It is ideal for all law enforcement and criminal justice professionals, as well as any community-policing stakeholders.

This tuition-free online training was a joint partnership between the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) and the Western Community Policing Institute (WCPI), and was originally supported by cooperative agreement 2008-CK-WX-K003 by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).

Related COPS Resources

Answering the Call to Mentor: 21st Century Policing through Youth Engagement
Engaging Police in Immigrant Communities
Gender, Sexuality, and 21st Century Policing: Protecting the Rights of the LGBTQ+ Community
Police Perspectives: Building Trust in a Diverse Nation - No. 1. How to Increase Cultural Understanding
Police Perspectives: Building Trust in a Diverse Nation - No. 2. How to Serve Diverse Communities
Recommendations on Advancing Community Policing in the Pasco Police Department

New Perspectives on Community Policing Syllabus.pdf

Police & Dog Encounters: Tactical Strategies and Effective Tools to Keep Our Communities Safe and Humane

This 5-part video series, Police and Dog Encounters: Tactical Strategies and Effective Tools to Keep Our Communities Safe and Humane, is the product of a collaborative partnership between the National Canine Research Council, Safe Humane Chicago and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office).

These roll call videos, along with the companion publication The Problem of Dog-Related Incidents and Encounters, discuss tools, practices, and procedures that contribute to effective responses to dog-related incidents and encounters where dogs are present. They are designed to help develop skills for law enforcement in effective strategies in assessing a dog’s environment; what dog posture, vocalization, and facial expressions mean; options for distracting and escaping from a dog; defensive options in dealing with a dog; asking the right questions in dog investigations; and effective gathering of dog evidence and report writing. The primary goals include ensuring public and officer safety and considering community needs and demands.

Each video in the series is available in English and Spanish, and may be accessed via the COPS Training Portal in two ways: played directly through your logged-in COPS Training Portal user account; and/or downloaded, saved and played offline, directly from your device.

Audience: The target audience for the training videos is sworn law enforcement officers of all ranks and positions.

Procedural Justice: Roll Call Training for Law Enforcement (5-part Video Series)

This 5-part series, Procedural Justice: Roll Call Training for Law Enforcement, was developed by the Center for Public Safety and Justice (CPSJ) at the University of Illinois - Chicago with support from the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) through cooperative agreement 2012CKWXK005.

This video series, along with its accompanying Presenter’s Guide, was developed to reinforce internal and external procedural justice concepts. Each scenario/video in the series may be accessed via the COPS Training Portal in two ways: played directly through your logged-in COPS Training Portal user account, and/or downloaded, saved and played offline, directly from your device. Each scenario is meant to be used in a separate roll call training; each roll call training is designed to be approximately 20 minutes in duration.

This roll call training should not be substituted for in-depth internal or external, front-line, supervisor, executive level, civilian staff or community procedural justice training. The roll call series should – over a period of time – reinforce the broader awareness of procedural justice and its core principles, and affirm the importance of utilizing procedural justice as a means of increasing police legitimacy with the public as well as organizational legitimacy with employees. The roll call trainings reinforce how enhancing the public’s perception of police legitimacy increases voluntary community compliance and community support, which may as a result, improve officer and community safety.

Audience: The target audience for the 5-part Procedural Justice Roll Call Training is sworn law enforcement front-line officers who have participated in procedural justice training; preferably the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services approved Procedural Justice for Law Enforcement: Organizational Change through Decision Making and Policy and Procedural Justice for Law Enforcement Front-line Officers.

However, the material is relevant to sworn law enforcement personnel at all organizational levels and could be creatively used as prompts for community dialogues.

Applied Evidence-Based Policing Practices: Homicide and Violent Crime Reduction

Although the past several decades have seen a steady decrease in violent crime statistics, homicides and violent crimes continue to have a devastating impact on many of our nation's communities. With long-term social implications and staggering economic consequences, even minimal levels of violent crime diminish the quality of life in affected communities. In response, homicide and violent crime reduction (HVR) remains a top priority for police agencies throughout the nation. The challenge is addressing violent crime with effective interventions and countermeasures. Instead of guessing or speculating on which HVR strategies work best, many agencies are turning to evidence-based policing practices (EBPP) to address the unique needs of the communities they serve.

Applied Evidence-Based Policing Practices: Homicide and Violent Crime Reduction is designed as a rapid eLearn course that provides an overview of the concept of evidence-based policing and examples of practices that have been shown to reduce homicides and violent crime. Crafted with all levels of police practitioners in mind, this course bridges the gap between research and practice.

On-screen text, videos and narration in a user-friendly eLearn environment allows participants to start, stop and resume the training based on their schedules. Participants should expect to spend approximately 2 - 4 hours exploring the resources provided in this dynamic and timely course.

This tuition-free online training was developed by the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) and was originally supported by cooperative agreement 2015-CK-WX-K022 by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).

Audience:

This course is ideal for law enforcement managers and decision makers, including but not limited to agency heads, directors, command staff, managers, and supervisors in agencies of all sizes. However, the content is also applicable to all law enforcement and criminal justice professionals, as well as any community-policing stakeholders.

Related COPS Resources

How Tribes can "TAP" into Critical Crime Data: COPS Funding in Action
Intelligence-Led Community Policing, Community Prosecution, and Community Partnerships
Las Vegas After-Action Assessment: Lessons Learned from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's Ambush Incident
Managing the Group Violence Intervention: Using Shooting Scorecards to Track Group Violence
The Integration of Crime Analysis into Patrol Work: A Guidebook
U.S. Attorney General's Summit on Violent Crime: Summary of Key Factors, Promising Strategies and Additional Steps

Applied Evidence Based Policing Practices Homicide Violent Crime Reduction Syllabus.pdf

Tactical Community Policing for Homeland Security

Tactical Community Policing for Homeland Security focuses on strengthening the capacity of law enforcement agencies to implement an all-crimes approach, based on community policing principles. The fundamental premise is that terrorism and community policing are both philosophical approaches aimed at influencing civilian populations. Whereas terrorism seeks to inspire fear and coerce civilian populations into submission, community policing aims to preserve order, diminish fear, and build resilience.

Throughout this eLearn course, participants explore the following topics:

• Community Partnerships
• Practical Problem Solving Strategies
• Proactive Prevention, Intervention and Interdiction Strategies
• Values Based Policing in the Climate of Terrorism
• The Process of Intelligence Development

This course is crafted as a concise and relevant eLearn course addressing the realities of policing in the 21st century. Designed with the practitioner in mind, the course includes on-screen text, videos, and narration in a user-friendly eLearn environment that allows participants to start, stop, and resume the training based on their schedules. Although it requires a minimum of 2 hours of uninterrupted run-time, participants should expect to spend approximately 4 hours completing this dynamic and timely course.

This tuition-free online training was developed by the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) and was originally supported by cooperative agreement 2013-CK-WX-K010 by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).

Audience:

This course is ideal for all law enforcement and criminal justice professionals, as well as any community-policing stakeholders.

Related COPS Resources

Building Interdisciplinary Partnerships to Prevent Violent Extremism
Building Stronger, Safer Communities
Engaging Police in Immigrant Communities
Enhancing Community Policing with Immigrant Populations
Innovators 2013: Reducing Crime by Increasing Trust in an Immigrant Community
Uniting Communities Post-9/11: Tactics for Cultivating Community Policing Partnerships with Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslin, and South Asian Communities
Waking in Oak Creek: A Guide for Law Enforcement

Tactical Community Policing for Homeland Security Online Syllabus.pdf

Ethical Considerations for Asset Forfeiture

This Ethical Considerations for Asset Forfeiture Course is provided by the Department of Justice. Asset forfeiture is an important and vital law enforcement tool. It helps strengthen cases, weaken or dismantle criminal enterprises, and return assets to victims of crimes. But like all tools, law enforcement and prosecuting authorities must use it appropriately. The purpose of this training is to ensure a command of when and how to properly seize assets for federal forfeiture so that you can protect the rights of the public while also protecting your case and yourself. Misusing asset forfeiture laws and ignoring asset forfeiture policies can have serious implications.

Module 1 – Overview and Purposes of Asset Forfeiture

This module discusses some of the numerous ways that asset forfeiture fulfills the mission of law enforcement.

Module 2 – Concerns about Asset Forfeiture

This module discusses three criticisms of forfeiture: corruption, fairness, and a lack of accountability.

Module 3 – Asset Forfeiture Best Practices

This module provides some best practices when considering the seizure of assets.

Module 4 – Federal and State Cooperation

This module discusses how state and local law enforcement can cooperate with their Federal law enforcement counterparts to ensure a successful and proper seizure and forfeiture of assets.

Module 5 – Asset Forfeiture Resources

This module provides links to additional references and resources discussed in this course.

Ethical Decision Making: Policing with Principled Insight

Ethical Decision Making: Policing with Principled Insight is a thought-provoking eLearn course that explores the practice of decision making and the ethical principles that support effective policing. In one of its most impactful and rewarding endeavors to date, VCPI partnered with the USDOJ, COPS Office to create the Ethical Decision Making: Policing with Principled Insight program. As part of this larger initiative, this course stresses that police ethics are not just an after-thought or a means of discouraging bad behavior. Instead, ethics are a controlling insight that inform and guide police practitioners from an internal, personal capacity.This innovative eLearn course invites participants to join a 2500 year-old conversation on ethical decision making while exploring realistic, modern day challenges faced by policing professionals.

Recognizing that for policing professionals, public trust, integrity, and liability hinge on each and every decision, this is crafted as a concise and relevant course addressing the realities of policing in the 21st century. Designed with the practitioner in mind, Ethical Decision Making: Policing with Principled Insight includes on-screen text, videos, and narration in a user-friendly eLearn environment that allows participants to start, stop, and resume the training based on their schedules. Although it requires a minimum of 2 hours of uninterrupted run-time, participants should expect to spend approximately 4 hours completing this dynamic and timely course.

This tuition-free online training was developed by the Virginia Center for Policing Innovation (VCPI) and was originally supported Cooperative Agreement 2012-Ck-WX-K011 by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).

Related COPS Resources

COPS Evaluation Brief No. 3: Creating a Culture of Integrity
Crime Prevention Research Review No. 10: Legitimacy in Policing
Racial Reconciliation, Truth-Telling, and Police Legitimacy
"That's Not Fair!" Policing and Perceptions of Fairness
The Case for Procedural Justice: Fairness as a Crime Prevention Tool
The State of Policing in the United States, Volume 1

Ethical Decision Making Syllabus.pdf

Public Law 280 Training Program for Enhanced Collaborative Law Enforcement

PL280 is nuanced and can have different applications in different states, thus it has resulted in confusion regarding jurisdiction in Indian Country. However, through cooperation and collaborative resource sharing, tribal and non-tribal law enforcement can work within PL280 to benefit their jurisdictions. This four-module curriculum is designed to provide participants with background information and tangible strategies necessary for effectively policing PL280 reservations.

Module 1: WHAT IS PUBLIC LAW 280?

Get to know the history of PL280, learn when tribal, state, and federal governments have jurisdiction, and understand the practical applications of PL280 in your state.

Module 2: COMMUNITY POLICING

Learn benefits and challenges to community policing and how to implement key community policing strategies in order to enhance responsiveness to the most challenging and frequently occurring crimes in PL280 jurisdictions.

Module 3: TASK FORCE DEVELOPMENT

Learn how to establish a task force, garner support for task force development, gather resources, and adapt the task force to overcome environmental and political barriers.

Module 4: SOVEREIGNTY THROUGH EFFECTIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT

Learn about the historical background of tribal governments in order to understand how sovereignty can be used to foster effective law enforcement by building capacity through regulation and tribal law.

Audience: Law enforcement and tribal and non-tribal leadership state/government leadership.

Additional Resources

Public Law 280 Homepage

Strategic Applications International Homepage

Cross-Deputization in Indian Country (pdf)

Promising Practices in Tribal Community Policing (pdf)

Public Safety Partnerships in Indian Country (pdf)

Successful Tribal Community Policing Initiatives: A Resource for Communities Developing Public Safety Programs and Strategies (pdf)

Department of Justice - American Indians and Crime (pdf)

Department of Justice - Public Law 280 FAQ

Department of Justice - Policing on American Indian Reservations (pdf)

National Institute of Justice - Violence Against American Indian and Alaska Native Women and Men (pdf)