MSNBC host takes police training in Morris

UPDATE: MSNBC has rescheduled the segment to air on Thursday night due to continuing coverage of the train derailment in Philadelphia.

MSNBC's Chris Hayes paid a recent visit to the Morris County Public Safety Training Academy, where the prime-time TV host spent time in a simulator to learn how law-enforcement officers are trained to handle potentially dangerous confrontations with the public.

Following up on controversies resulting from deadly police-public encounters in places such as Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Hayes wanted to explore how officers are trained to make critical and sometimes life-or-death decisions. He found an ideal location at the academy in Parsippany, where an interactive simulator was installed in November to give the Morris County law-enforcement community the latest in training.

The segment will air 8 p.m. Wednesday on "All in with Chris Hayes."

"It was really interesting," Hayes said from his New York office. "We've been thinking about how some of these situations turn on a single decision, and how to report on that. This was close by, they were super-receptive and very cool about it."

Working with instructor Paul Carifi Jr., also president of the Parsippany Township Council, Hayes entered the simulator, which operates much like a pumped-up video game with three screens surrounding the officer in training. Depending on the scenario, and the trainee's reaction to that scenario, the simulator adjusts the reactions of the "suspects."

"There was one where I drew my weapon on a guy who picked up a cinder block and threatened to throw it at me from 60 feet away," Hayes said. "I got a talking-to about that."

In other cases, trainees who make critical mistakes are zapped by an electrical "shock" belt to let him or her know they have been shot. Hayes said the shock didn't hurt but did help to drive home the lesson.

The training also takes into account the many options a police officer might have to address in a given situation, including handguns, rifles, pepper spray or Taser, and what might happen depending on the choices they must make in a split second.

"I was impressed about how immersive of an experience it was," Hayes said. "How quickly you forgot where you were and got into the simulation."

"We had another simulating system in the past, but that was night and day compared to what we have now," Cairifi said. "Part of my job is firearm training. All officers have to pass a test twice a year. That is about proficiency. The simulator incorporates a lot of decision making. But if you do use deadly force, it also tracks your proficiency."

Carifi said Hayes "Did alright, pretty well for a civilian."

"Paul was great," Hayes said. "A real no-nonsense guy."

Scott Di Giralomo, Morris County Department of Law and Public Safety director, said the MSNBC producers contacted him after reading about their new simulator.

"Training is very topical now after what happened in Ferguson and other places," he said. "This new simulator creates very realistic simulations for the officers in critical environments."

All Morris County public law-enforcement agencies use the simulator, Di Giralomo said, with the goal of keeping both police and the public safe during confrontations that might otherwise result in injury or death.

"If they can keep it to a verbal discussion instead of drawing their weapon, that is beneficial to all," Di Giralomo said.

About 500 officers and officer trainees have used the simulator since November, Di Giralomo said.

Staff Writer William Westhoven: 973-428-6627; wwesthoven@GannettNJ.com.