Deadly Force Encounters sold so fast that it went into a second printing one week after it was released.

Caliber Press has praised this book as a must read!

This one-of-a-kind book reveals to law enforcement officers, agencies and citizens the hidden dangers of deadly force encounters.

The authors help officers understand how to stay alive when faced with a kill-or-be-killed threat and gives them information and resources on how they and their families can survive the personal and professional pandemonium that follows.

From training tips and first person accounts by officers who have survived deadly threats, to the impact on the officers' familes and traumatic incident debriefings, this remarkable book offers a wealth of information about deadly force encounters. It is a must read for officers, command staff, mental health professionals and citizens.

Chapters include:

Shocking personal accounts of officers and their families The Survival Triangle: Physical, legal, psychological The nature of police work and violence Mastering the psychobiology of fear Perceptual, memory and cognitive distortions during traumatic events The 4 R's of deadly force training Recognition and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder Making yourself stress resistant The four tyupes of traumatic incidents Helping officers' families Administrative guidelines for agencies Peer support recommendations Guidelines for investigators on investigating shootings and interviewing officers The components of a comprehensive officer survival program


A vital book for anyone who wants to understand combat   April 10, 1999
 12 out of 12 found this review helpful

I am Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, author of the Book "On Killing." I train and speak to law enforcement, military, and medical personel world-wide. The information in "Deadly Force Encounters" has become one of the cornerstones of my presentations, and I recommend the book strongly to everyone I train. In particular, the information (based on Dr. Artwohl's groundbreaking research) on perceptual distortions in combat provides vital, revolutionaly new insight into what happens to people in combat. This book is an absolute must for ANYONE who wants to understand the reality of combat, in law enforcement or military, in history or in their personal future. The book will be extremely useful to individuals after a deadly force encounter, but its greatest value is to prepare those who will have to face combat. Like a bulletproof vest, the mental preparation that this book can provide is best when in it is put in place BEFORE the bullets fly, thereby, enevitibly, undoubtedly, saving lives.


A vital book for anyone who wants to understand combat   April 10, 1999
 52 out of 54 found this review helpful

I am Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, author of the Book "On Killing." I train and speak to law enforcement, military, and medical personel world-wide. The information in "Deadly Force Encounters" has become one of the cornerstones of my presentations, and I recommend the book strongly to everyone I train. In particular, the information (based on Dr. Artwohl's groundbreaking research) on perceptual distortions in combat provides vital, revolutionaly new insight into what happens to people in combat. This book is an absolute must for ANYONE who wants to understand the reality of combat, in law enforcement or military, in history or in their personal future. The book will be extremely useful to individuals after a deadly force encounter, but its greatest value is to prepare those who will have to face combat. Like a bulletproof vest, the mental preparation that this book can provide is best when in it is put in place BEFORE the bullets fly, thereby, enevitibly, undoubtedly, saving lives.


BEST officer survival book for AFTER the shooting   April 4, 1999
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

As the wife of an officer with PTSD, I highly recommend this book to the other survivors of a shooting: the family, the agency and the counselors. All law enforcement, but especially training officers should read this book. Very readable style - management has no excuse NOT to read this book!


Excellent guidelines for avoiding PTSD   February 3, 1998
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

This book is much more than the title indicates.It is an excellent resource for police officers, firefighters, the Coast Guard, paramedics and others doing emergency work on how to avoid "bystander" PTSD. Emergency work can expose a person to gruesome, sometimes disgusting, heart-wrenching experiences that sear into one's brain and soul. In Deadly Force Encounters Artwohl and Christensen draw on their many years experience working with police officers and Vietnam veterans to describe a very effective trauma survival program. They show how to overcome the impact of extreme experiences and heal instead of being emotionally wounded for life. Highly recommended.