Pascagoula Police Department Launches VR Training Simulator

Apex Officer, the leading provider of VR training simulators for law enforcement, military, and first responders has announced that they're expanding their footprint in the state of Mississippi and brought the Apex Officer VR training platform to Pascagoula police officers. Our immersive VR training simulator is providing unprecedented training opportunities to law enforcement professionals across the state of Mississippi.

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Pascagoula Police Department Pioneers Virtual Reality Training In Mississippi

As reported by the Dark Horse Press, "Pascagoula Police Department is the first in the state to introduce training equipment that gives officers a chance to practice real world situations without having to be in real-world confrontations."

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The Pascagoula Police Department is getting real about virtual training.

For over a week now, Pascagoula police officers have been testing the waters with virtual reality training so they are even more prepared to handle real-world scenarios. Thursday was officer Anthony Vail’s initial attempt at virtual reality training. His first assignment: to deal with an intoxicated woman in a grocery store.

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“It felt real,” he said. “As real as it can get.”

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Apex Officer offers law enforcement agencies endless training scenarios.

“You have an alley, you have a city, you have a correctional department, an apartment, an abandoned factory,” said Capt. Chris Weeks as he showed off the program. And it has seemingly endless scenarios. “You can deal with subjects with mental illness, you can deal with intoxicated subjects,” he said. “You can do domestic violence. You can do a traffic stop.”

That will be a situation on which Weeks, who is the training coordinator, will concentrate. “Traffic stops are one of the things that officers do more than anything,” he said.

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De-escalation is a top priority.

“That’s one of the main things why we bought the equipment in the first place,” Weeks said. “Officers can practice these de-escalation techniques here in a safe environment. Safe for them, safe for the citizens.”

The ongoing training will eventually involve every officer in the department.

Officer Vail said it’s needed especially for the young officers. “You’re going to have adrenalin rushes especially with stuff you’ve never dealt with before,” he said. “This puts them in the situations. That way, when they actually do encounter these in the real world, it keeps them calm. They know how to react. They don’t overreact and do something they shouldn’t.”

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If you are interested in learning more about how police departments and law enforcement agencies continue to increase their use of VR training simulators in 2023, we recently wrote a complete story on this subject. 2023 will be a big year for virtual reality and law enforcement training.

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Conclusion

Apex Officer is a leader in virtual reality training for law enforcement. We are proud to have been selected to provide our innovative technology to the state of Mississippi and the Pascagoula Police Department. We take pride in our commitment to professionalism, safety, and accuracy. To learn more about Apex Officer’s virtual reality training platform for law enforcement, please schedule your free product demonstration today. If you'd like to speak to someone on our procurement team, Apex Officer product experts are available to assist you.

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