Lavonia Police Looking at Brazilian JiuJitsu Training

As the City of Lavonia prepares to put together its budget for the next fiscal year, Lavonia Police are asking the City to fund the training of two officers in the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

In a presentation last week to the City Council, Mayor Courtney Umbehant, and City Manager Charles Cawthon, Lavonia Police Captain Blake Andrews spoke on the benefits of training officers in the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Andrews said currently when a suspect is resisting arrest and combative, the goal of the officer or officers involved is to gain control by wrestling that suspect to the ground, and sometimes that involves the use of non-deadly force.

He said, however, that can take a physical and mental toll on the officers and it is not always effective in subduing a subject.

Andrews pointed to the case of fugitive Johnny Mack Brown in 2008 who was captured by two Lavonia Police officers – one of them, a former officer and now councilman Michael Schulman.

“Non-deadly options such as tasers, OC spray, and baton are tools that we have and that we train on every year. These tools are great when they work. However, they do not work every time and are ineffective a lot of times against a highly motivated subject. We cannot rely on these tools working 100% of the time. For example, Johnny Mack Brown. Michael Schulman was there during the arrest of Johnny Mack Brown. He (Johnny Mack Brown) was pepper-sprayed, he was tasered, he was hit in the head with an old-school mag light twice and he kept fighting. So, we have to be prepared for other force options such as our hands-on tactics,” Andrews explained.

Andrews also demonstrated the physical and mental toll on officers currently by playing Lavonia police camera footage for the Council of a takedown of a combative suspect by officers.  He said it took a total of six minutes to get the individual under control.

Andrews said by using Brazilian Jiu Jitsu an officer could gain control more quickly and with less physical and mental stress on both himself and the suspect.

Andrews cited a study by the Marietta Police Department. That department began training their officers in the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2008 and in 18 months the department saw a 48% reduction in officers injured in fights with combative subjects.

Andrews said there is a Brazilian JiuJitzu training center in Commerce where officers from other departments, along with the general public, go once a week for training.

Currently, officers go once or twice a year for non-deadly force training, he said.

Andrews asked the City Council to agree to fund training for himself and one other officer. The two would then become certified and teach fellow officers in the Lavonia Police Department.

The total cost for two officers to take the classes in Commerce would be $2400 a year or $100 a month for each officer.

After hearing from Andrews, the Council members, Cawthon, and the Mayor agreed the training would be beneficial.

No vote was taken at the work session but the Council agreed to look into funding the training.