Palmer Officers Complete 3-Day Crash Investigation Training [Photos]

Like every police department, Palmer Township deals with motor-vehicle accidents—everything from minor fender benders to traumatic fatal crashes. 

Due to the volume of crashes, Palmer Township’s police department joined Upper Nazareth Township and other area police departments in a three-day course: Fundamentals of On-Scene Vehicle Collision Investigation.

The introductory-level training, given by the Institute for Law Enforcement Education, is “designed to provide law enforcement officers with the awareness and skill necessary to gather and document the physical evidence at the collision scene,” according to a flier provided to Patch.

And, hopefully, better prepares officers for the more chilling scenes, said Upper Nazareth Officer Mark Herman.

“The amount of training in the police academy doesn’t prepare you for fatal accidents,” Herman explained, later adding that he’s had to help overwhelmed rookie officers. 

The curriculum for the three-day course, which was taught by Tim Winters, the training program coordinator for the Institute for Law Enforcement Education, included:

• Classification of traffic collisions
• Physical evidence from the roadway
• Measuring and diagramming the collision scene
• Properly reporting the evidence and details of the collision

Thirteen police departments sent 28 officers to participate in the training, which was held March 4-6:

• Bushkill Township
• Moore Township
• Wind Gap
• Pen Argyl
• Washington Township (Northampton County)
• Palmer Township
• Bangor
• East Bangor
• Upper Saucon Township
• Lehigh University
• Kutztown
• New Britain (Bucks County) 

Holy Family Club donated space for classroom training, while Lehigh University hosted the hands-on training.

In August, the Upper Nazareth Township Police Department and National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA) co-hosted a specialized "Active Shooter" training.