CDP Training Pays Off for Montana Civil Disobedience Team

The city of Helena, Mont. garnered national attention in mid-July 2011 when approximately 70 environmental activists from Montana and other states gathered at the state capitol to dispute construction of a planned pipeline from Alberta, Canada through Montana. Thanks to training through the Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP), the local Civil Disobedience Team (CDT) was prepared to respond and end the situation peacefully.

"We make it mandatory that every officer or deputy selected to be on the CDT has to attend the CDP training courses on Field Force Operations and Field Force Extrication Tactics at least once, preferably within a year of being appointed to the team," said Dave Jeseritz, assistant chief of police for the Helena Police Department." The CDP training not only helped us start bonding as a joint team, it also helped us build up our confidence by learning how to defeat the various protester devices."

The CDT, which includes officers from the Helena Police Department and the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff's Office, has sent 47 officers to CDP training since 2006. The courses included techniques to defeat the exact devices the protestors used to lock themselves together inside the state capitol. Nationwide, CDP has trained more than 17,000 law enforcement personnel in field force extrication and operations.

"Our joint CDT felt very prepared for this event," Jeseritz said. "The training our team members received from the CDP was undoubtedly one of the main reasons that this event went as smooth as it did. From the chief, sheriff, and the commanders in charge down to team members themselves, everyone was confident the team was well trained and equipped to handle the situation."

The protesters used five devices to link themselves together. Each device would have to be removed before police could arrest anyone. All the while, chants and loud drumming from the other 60-plus protesters radiated through the state capitol. After removing two devices and extricating two protesters the remaining three unlocked themselves, Jeseritz said. According to Jeseritz, despite the protestors' disruption, the officers were confident as they worked to defuse the situation.

"That confidence was apparent to the protestors, who appeared surprised by our knowledge and organization in handling the event," Jeseritz said "We believe that they were shocked to see our knowledge and expertise in the devices they brought in."

The CDP offers three Field Force Courses. Field Force Operations prepares law enforcement to employ crowd control measures and civil disorders; Field Force Command and Planning is designed for management-level personnel who may serve as a member of an incident management team during civil action or disorder; and Field Force Extrication Tactics (as demonstrated in Helena) that provides law enforcement and other emergency personnel with the knowledge, skills, and tools to safely remove protester devices designed to interrupt and delay operations.

Photos Courtesy of Dylan Brown, Independent Record