New simulator helps show officer’s point of view of a crime

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - On Monday, Johnson C. Smith University was gifted a “Force Training Simulator” from a company called Ti Training.

Todd Brown, the vice president of Ti Training, said his company creates simulations and training content like this with hundreds of outcomes. No matter the possible situation, the simulator can probably program a moment to replicate it.

“This particular system has over 800 scenarios. Each one of those scenarios was designed around a specific training objective. That scenario then in turn has several different branches it can take based on how the trainee interacts with the scenario,” Brown said.

Randy Nelson, an associate professor at Bethune-Cookman University, said he is working with Ti Training to bring the simulators to historically black colleges and universities across America.

Nelson said the simulator serves a bigger purpose outside of teaching criminal justice students.

“The only beauty with this is you get to take the bullets back, you can make a mistake. In real life, you can’t. My perspective along with Ti (Training) is that I want to see not only diverse law enforcement - we’re not trying to produce police officers - I want the next chief, the next Sheriff McFadden. That’s what this is about,” said Nelson.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden joined in the simulation gifting on Monday. He shared his excitement about having the simulator at Johnson C. Smith, his alma mater.

He loves how it provides a different point of view to the community.

“Most people believe that they know what police officers do when they come into a dangerous situation. But it’s actually the mind and how it develops to react. So we’re going to show people how difficult that could be,” said McFadden.

Nelson says Johnson C. Smith can take the Force Simulator and its training beyond the classroom to share with campus police and members of the community.

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford stopped by the gifting ceremony on Monday at JCSU. He said he had some of the players use the simulator in the past.

To learn more about Ti Training and its simulators, click here.

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