Buckeye Reporter

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has announced the launch of a series of immersive virtual reality (VR) trainings for law enforcement across the state. The initiative is part of the office's commitment to leveraging advanced technology for peace officers.

"These VR goggles are the next best thing to real-world experience because officers are immersed in split-second decision-making scenarios," Yost said. "If someone makes a mistake while using virtual reality, it doesn't have consequences in the real world."

The VR training supplements existing methods, enabling officers to practice responding to and defusing potentially volatile situations using soft skills and crisis-management techniques. The approach offers peace officers an authentic feel of real-life trauma, distractions, reactions, and more.

Currently, six scenarios are available – each lasting eight to 12 minutes – that serve as standalone training but can also be integrated into longer courses. The scenario topics cover mental health, domestic violence, school violence, teen brain development, suicide prevention, and irate families.

These scenarios have been loaded onto 160 headsets and are accessible to Ohio’s 900 law enforcement agencies through the OPOTA Close to Home program. This program is a partnership between the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy and six regional training providers located throughout the state. This strategy enables low-cost, frequent, standardized statewide training that can be completed during a peace officer’s shift.

"We want officers to have a shared training foundation across jurisdictions, and this is one way to ensure that," Yost said. "More consistent training means safer streets for everyone."

The scenarios were shot on 360-degree cameras and produced in collaboration with several institutions including Ohio University’s Scripps College of Communication and McClure School of Emerging Communication Technologies among others.

Before launching the program, the goggles were tested on a group of law enforcement leaders through the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at The Ohio State University.

"We were excited to have members from the 11th cohort of the Public Safety Leadership Academy take part in the virtual reality simulation training," said OSU Program Manager Todd Thomas. "Getting the opportunity to have 32 senior law enforcement officers from across Ohio experience the future of technology-enhanced training firsthand will help further engagement as this program continues to grow."