POSSE Risk Assessment & Mitigation 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An officer arrives at a domestic disturbance and notices one party has a fresh laceration and the other is pacing nervously near the kitchen. What is the officer's highest-priority risk mitigation step?
- Begin taking written statements immediately
- Separate the parties and secure the kitchen area (Correct answer)
- Call for a supervisor before taking any action
- Issue a verbal warning to both parties
Correct answer: Separate the parties and secure the kitchen area
Separating the parties reduces immediate re-injury risk while securing the kitchen removes access to potential weapons.
Question 2: Which risk factor most significantly elevates the danger level when responding to a suicidal subject call?
- The subject is outdoors
- The subject has a specific plan and means available (Correct answer)
- The subject has previously called police
- The subject is alone
Correct answer: The subject has a specific plan and means available
A specific plan combined with available means indicates imminent lethality and requires immediate de-escalation and crisis intervention.
Question 3: During a vehicle pursuit, the risk-benefit analysis that justifies continuation should weigh the threat posed by the fleeing suspect against:
- The cost of vehicle damage to patrol cars
- The likelihood of the suspect evading identification later
- The danger created for uninvolved bystanders and officers (Correct answer)
- The availability of air support
Correct answer: The danger created for uninvolved bystanders and officers
Pursuits must be terminated when risk to the public exceeds the need to immediately apprehend the suspect.
Question 4: A threat assessment model that categorizes danger based on a subject's intent, capability, and opportunity is best described as:
- The SARA model
- The ICO (Intent-Capability-Opportunity) framework (Correct answer)
- The crime triangle
- Broken windows theory
Correct answer: The ICO (Intent-Capability-Opportunity) framework
The ICO framework evaluates whether a subject has the will, ability, and access needed to carry out harm.
Question 5: When establishing a perimeter around an active barricade situation, officers should position themselves:
- As close as possible to gather intelligence
- At hard cover outside the suspect's effective range (Correct answer)
- Directly at the entry points to prevent escape
- In unmarked vehicles to avoid detection
Correct answer: At hard cover outside the suspect's effective range
Hard cover outside effective range protects officers while maintaining containment.
Question 6: An officer conducting a welfare check finds a residence with blackout curtains, multiple dead-bolt locks, and motion-activated lights installed after dark. These observations should be treated as:
- Irrelevant personal lifestyle choices
- Indicators that warrant cautious approach and backup request (Correct answer)
- Proof of criminal activity requiring immediate forced entry
- Signs the occupant is a law enforcement professional
Correct answer: Indicators that warrant cautious approach and backup request
Environmental anomalies suggesting heightened security or concealment elevate officer risk and justify requesting backup before entry.
Question 7: The concept of 'threat displacement' in risk mitigation refers to:
- Moving a threat from a high-risk to a low-risk area
- The tendency for crime to shift to nearby areas when one location is hardened (Correct answer)
- Transferring case responsibility to another agency
- Relocating a witness to prevent intimidation
Correct answer: The tendency for crime to shift to nearby areas when one location is hardened
When enforcement efforts harden one location, criminal activity often displaces to adjacent, less-protected areas.
POSSE Risk Assessment & Mitigation 2
An officer arrives at a domestic disturbance and notices one party has a fresh laceration and the other is pacing nervously near the kitchen.
What is the officer's highest-priority risk mitigation step?