Posted: May 19, 2010 7:45 PM
Updated: May 19, 2010 7:45 PM
TUCSON - The day Governor Brewer signed SB 1070 into law, she gave the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board an assignment: come up with a way to teach police how to enforce the new law. A few weeks later, the board has announced the proposal.
"We are going to be producing a digital media training product," Lyle Mann, Executive Director of the AZ POST, said.
Mann estimates the plan will include about an hour to hour and 20 minutes of training on DVD's. The initial outline released Wednesday calls it "E-Learning." The plan defines racial profiling, telling law enforcement officers they cannot use race, skin color or ethnicity to determine reasonable suspicion.
The term "reasonable suspicion," however, is not defined.
Some say police already know what it means.
"First the person violates some other law, then the police officer speaks to them. As the officer probes more deeply, eventually more facts come up and bingo, you hit reasonable suspicion," State Representative John Kavanagh said.
The plan does not outline any interactive or face-to-face training. Will "E-Learning" be sufficient?
"It is the best I can do with the time that I have," Mann said.
The deadline for officers to be trained is July 29th, the day the law would go into effect.
The Tucson Police Department says they will meet whatever requirements the board makes.
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