Some community leaders from New Jersey took part in a police training program in Monmouth County in order to get a better understanding of what it takes to be a police officer.

It took place at the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Situational Training and Responses Simulator in Freehold where they were able to get hands-on lessons on a variety of police scenarios.

“The objective is to invite the community in to experience some of the training and tactical training and some of the things police officers train on to approach situations in real life,” says Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Pastor Lyddale Akins.

The community leaders used a 3D-response simulator, which allowed them to experience various police emergency situations. They also took a tour of the building and held an in-depth discussion on bias and the use of force.

Organizers say that the goal is to make the public aware of the kind of training police officers around New Jersey receive and to allow the participants to get a better idea of what police officers face – and how they have to make quick life-or-death decisions.

“It’s easy to Monday-morning quarterback the actions or inactions of a police officer,” says county prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni. “It’s designed to let them kind of stand in the shoes of the police officer who might be faced with an incident where the use of force might be required.”

Officials say that they hope that these community leaders take what they learned and bring those lessons back to their communities.