With change comes opportunity, and Law Officer is making some changes that will provide our readers incredible opportunities. Let me be clear: We're not making changes because anything is wrong. To the contrary. The feedback we get from our readers indicates we re definitely hitting the mark. The most frequent request we get is for more more tactics, technology and training, the three T's in our tagline.
What changes can you expect? First, we plan to roll out the best Web site ever. While I may be just a little biased, I really believe you ll find LawOfficer.com provides material that both compels and complements what you get in the magazine. Example: Going forward, you ll see Web links in the magazine to videos on LawOfficer.com in which our top authors provide you key training points in full-motion video.
No matter how skilled or experienced authors may be, they re always limited by how many words we can print and the fact we have to use still photos. By leveraging LawOfficer.com, we can provide you with a level of information that goes beyond any other magazine. It won t just be an electronic version of the print article; the Web opens up a new dimension, and we intend to take full advantage by providing additional material and, when possible, relevant video. At press time, LawOfficer.com s go live date is March 21.
What about that first T in our tagline, tactics? I m incredibly proud to tell you Law Officer will soon bring you the work of Brian McKenna, author of the famous Officer Down series that ran for more than 20 years in Police Marksman. As you may know, Police Marksman is no longer being published, and McKenna is now a part of our team. I remember reading his work back in the 1980s and being absolutely awed. I have a huge amount of respect for this man because he s personally responsible for improving the safety of thousands of officers.
You ll see his valuable articles every two or three issues. If that s not enough for you, each article will feature a link to a page on LawOfficer.com that displays an extensive breakdown and analysis of the incident by McKenna. This supplemental information is so thorough it won t fit in our print magazine, but there are no such limitations online. So, you ll get a great print article, and a Web link that provides additional information and training material.
When it comes to the Technology in our tagline, have we got a deal for you. When we embarked on the effort to launch LawOfficer.com, we hired one of the best practitioner technologists that you ll find anywhere Tim Dees. And not only will Tim run LawOfficer.com, he ll provide a unique tech article in every issue of Law Officer as our Technology columnist.
Plus, you ll see an increased focus on what I call practical technology tools that serve as force and resource multipliers. You won t see puff pieces reprinted from vendor press releases. That approach might work for other magazines, but it won t pass muster at Law Officer. When we do a product review, we go hands-on to give you insight that rewritten ad copy just can t provide.
Speaking of hands on, we ve partnered with the SPAWAR SC group to provide you the best information on new technologies for public safety. I ve had the opportunity to work with these folks, and they re absolutely first cabin in their approach, putting equipment into the hands of real cops to get feedback you can use to make buying decisions. Check out the first installment of this partnership on p. 50.
What about Training, you ask? Many of you know R.K. Miller, one of the finest tactical trainers in the country. Miller is an icon, and I m honored to know him. After decades of field experience, he teaches just about every facet of SWAT you can imagine, and does it in a way that draws incredible reviews from his students, many of whom are trainers. Starting this month, he s our new Train the Trainer columnist. His first piece (p. 60) challenges some conventional wisdom regarding the often-overlooked basic of safe weapons handling.
So there you have it. A lot of changes that will bring you more of the three T s that put us on the map tactics, technology and training. And, the launch of the finest law enforcement Web site at LawOfficer.com.
Dale Stockton, Editor
