Bridgewater Goes High-Tech, Uses Virtual Reality To Train Police

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Bridgewater is going high-tech with the recent purchase of the Street Smart VR (Virtual Reality) System to train township police officers in real-life scenarios.

The council unanimously passed a resolution to pay $25,000 for the new training system at Monday night's meeting.

"This is really state-of-the-art, the best you can get, on being innovative on how we can continue to be sure our officers are trained," said Mayor Matthew Moench at the meeting.

The system, which was developed by former first responders and military personnel, provides hundreds of training scenarios, created by using real-life body-worn camera footage, to put officers through real-life situations.

The equipment is portable and can be set up almost anywhere. The training session is recorded which allows for a playback critique session with the officers from multiple angles and in-depth reference points.

"We liked it, Did demo with it, this is definitely real-world scenarios," said Police Chief Paul Payne. "I am just trying to get cutting edge training for our officers."

Payne noted that the trainings can be customized to each department and specific scenarios such as responding to an Emotionally Disturbed Person (EDP) by using Bridgewater's officer's body cam footage.

"Because of high profile officer-involved shootings throughout the United States, there has been a call on national, state, and local levels for more police training that involves de-escalation techniques instead of deployment of physical, mechanical, or deadly force," said Payne. "This agency embraces any new and cutting edge training that provides opportunities for our officers to improve their skills in dealing with tense situations while serving our community."

Additionally, the new system will be available for the public to try out, once COVID restrictions lift.

"Not only is this useful for the department but we can put it out to the public. They can see the life of or how a law enforcement officer will be put in certain situations and how they would react to it. It kind of gives them a realistic look at everything," said Payne.

See below to view a brief overview of the program:

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