On Friday June 3rd, 2022, The Parsons Police Department will be receiving a grant awarded to them for the purchase of a 300-degree use of force simulator. Senator Jerry Moran will be at the Parsons Municipal Building to award this grant to Parsons Police Chief Robert Spinks.

The grant award will be 135,000.00 for the purchase of the simulator in a continued effort to train officers in the region in de-escalation.

"It is a valuable tool to know how and when to use force and when to deescalate a situation," according to Spinks. "There is no replacement for sheer experience but training in a 300 degree is the safest and most practical way of gaining that experience. This simulator will be used to train not only the Parsons officers but all officers in the region if their agency wishes to participate. We even have plans to use this simulator for Labette Community College students who are enrolled in a Criminal Justice program."

Parsons Police officers will be present along with members of the City Council and members of the Parsons Public Safety Advisory Board.

"We hope that this paves a way for more federal money to supplement smaller rural police departments for training and equipment. It is easy for large departments to gain grant money for equipment due to their sheer size and available staff to find and write those grant applications. It is important to remember that the average size police department in the united stated is just 25 officers. That makes Parsons among the national average, and we can all appreciate how important a grant like this can be for a community our size," finished Spinks.

# # # # #