NTN Police Human Relations & Judgment 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: You respond to a call where a citizen claims their car was towed without notice. The citizen is very upset. You should:
- Tell the citizen to call a tow company and leave
- Listen to the complaint, verify the facts, explain the towing ordinance, and provide appropriate resources (Correct answer)
- Apologize on behalf of the city and promise reimbursement
- Issue a report against the towing company immediately
Correct answer: Listen to the complaint, verify the facts, explain the towing ordinance, and provide appropriate resources
Verifying facts and explaining the process de-escalates frustration and helps the citizen take appropriate corrective steps.
Question 2: You discover that a fellow officer has been falsifying timesheets. The correct course of action is to:
- Confront the officer and give them a chance to self-report first
- Report the misconduct to a supervisor or internal affairs (Correct answer)
- Ignore it to preserve department unity
- Mention it informally to other colleagues
Correct answer: Report the misconduct to a supervisor or internal affairs
Falsifying official records is misconduct requiring mandatory reporting through the proper chain of command or internal affairs.
Question 3: A suspect who is handcuffed and secured complains of chest pain. You should:
- Wait to see if the pain passes before taking action
- Immediately request emergency medical services and monitor the suspect's condition (Correct answer)
- Remove the handcuffs to make the suspect more comfortable
- Dismiss it as a manipulation tactic and continue processing
Correct answer: Immediately request emergency medical services and monitor the suspect's condition
Officers have a duty of care for persons in custody; chest pain requires immediate medical attention regardless of the circumstances of arrest.
Question 4: While interviewing a witness, you sense they are withholding information out of fear. The best approach is to:
- Threaten the witness with obstruction charges to compel cooperation
- End the interview and find another witness
- Build rapport, assure the witness of available protections, and explain the importance of their account (Correct answer)
- Accept the limited information and close the inquiry
Correct answer: Build rapport, assure the witness of available protections, and explain the importance of their account
Building trust and explaining witness protection options encourages cooperation better than coercion.
Question 5: A business owner asks you to remove a homeless individual who is sitting quietly on a public sidewalk outside their store. You should:
- Immediately order the individual to leave the area
- Explain to the business owner that sitting quietly in a public space is not a crime, and offer outreach resources for the individual (Correct answer)
- Arrest the individual for loitering to resolve the complaint
- Ignore both parties and continue patrol
Correct answer: Explain to the business owner that sitting quietly in a public space is not a crime, and offer outreach resources for the individual
Sitting quietly in public is not a criminal offense; officers should educate the complainant and offer resources rather than enforce improperly.
Question 6: You are assigned to work with a new officer who lacks confidence during calls. The best way to support them is to:
- Take over every call so the new officer does not make mistakes
- Criticize errors loudly on scene to reinforce learning
- Provide calm, constructive feedback after calls and allow the new officer to take appropriate lead (Correct answer)
- Report the new officer's deficiencies to command after each shift
Correct answer: Provide calm, constructive feedback after calls and allow the new officer to take appropriate lead
Constructive post-call feedback and guided experience build a new officer's confidence without undermining their authority on scene.
Question 7: A citizen stops you to report suspicious activity on their block but is reluctant to give their name. You should:
- Refuse to take the information unless the citizen identifies themselves
- Accept the information, document it as an anonymous tip, and investigate appropriately (Correct answer)
- Promise the citizen complete anonymity in all official reports
- Dismiss the tip since it cannot be verified without a name
Correct answer: Accept the information, document it as an anonymous tip, and investigate appropriately
Anonymous tips provide actionable intelligence that officers can investigate; requiring identification unnecessarily discourages community cooperation.
NTN Police Human Relations & Judgment 5
You respond to a call where a citizen claims their car was towed without notice.
The citizen is very upset.
You should: