Slips and capture
Slips and capture is an alleged type of error that occurs in high stress situations, in which a person inadvertently performs one action while intending to do another.[1][2] Slips and capture has been referenced by law enforcement in two prominent fatal shooting cases where a suspect was shot by a police officer while allegedly intending to use a Taser.[3][4][5] A criminal justice expert interviewed by CNN stated that there were no scientific basis for the theory of "slip and capture", and that most courts would reject the argument as inadmissible.[6] However, the ideas and terminology of slips and capture exist in the study of the psychology of human error,[7] which was extensively defined by James Reason in 1990.[8]
"Slips and Capture" is a phrase made notable by police use-of-force consultant Bill Lewinski in 2009 as part of the defense of an officer charged with the accidental shooting of a suspect in an Oakland, California train station,[9] but has also been used in the business[10] and medical sectors.[11] Both terms occur in error terminology,[12] where slips are defined as "errors in the performance of skill-based behaviors, typically when our attention is diverted",[7] and capture refers to "a type of slip where a more frequent and more practiced behavior takes place when a similar, but less familiar, action was intended."[13]
Lewinski has a doctorate in psychology from Union Institute & University, an online college.[14] His company, "Force Science Institute", specializes in damage control for police departments, advertising “We save lives and reputations” on their website.[15] Lewinski published a newsletter article on the "Slips and Capture" theory in "Force Science News #154" after he began work on the Fruitvale (BART station) shooting defense.[16]
Shooting of Oscar Grant
On New Year's Day of 2009, Oscar Grant III was shot and killed by Bay Area Rapid Transit officer Johannes Mehserle after subduing the suspect following a fight.[17] Mehserle indicated that he intended to use his Taser, but inadvertently grabbed his pistol, a SIG Sauer P226, instead.[18][19]
Shooting of Eric Courtney Harris
44-year-old Eric Courtney Harris was shot to death April 2, 2015 during an undercover sting in Tulsa, Oklahoma as Harris ran from authorities. As Harris was being subdued, Tulsa County Reserve Deputy Robert Charles “Bob” Bates, 73, confused his Smith & Wesson revolver for a Taser and fatally shot Harris in the back, according to the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office. Bates is using slips and capture in his defense.[20][21]
References
- ↑ "Tulsa shooting: Deputy Robert Bates charged". CNN.com. 2015-04-14. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Destroying Myths & Discovering Cold Facts : Force Science explains "slips-and-capture errors" And other psychological phenomena that drove the fateful BART shooting". Policeone.com. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Tulsa Officer Says He Mistook Handgun for Taser". wsj.com.
- ↑ "Officials call shooting a "slips and capture" event". One News Page.
- ↑ "Oklahoma Deputy Tells Dying Man Shot by Accident, "Fuck Your Breath," as he Gasps His Final Breaths – PINAC". Photographyisnotacrime.com. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "How easy is it to confuse a gun for a Taser? - CNN.com". Edition.cnn.com. 2015-04-21. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- 1 2 "Intro to the pyscology of human error and medical errors". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ "Human error – slips and mistakes – The Interaction". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ BART Police shooting of Oscar Grant
- ↑ "Skill, Rule, and Knowledge-Based Behaviours and Errors". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ "Patient Safety Tip of the Week Archive". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ "Glossary of Error-Proofing Terms". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ "Usability First – Usability Glossary – capture error". Retrieved 2015-05-16.
- ↑ "Expert in deadly force training criticized for record on police shootings : Wsj". Host.madison.com. 2014-07-31. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "About Force Science". Forcescience.org. 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Force science News #154 : Force Science explains "slips-and-capture errors" and other psychological phenomena that drove the fateful BART shooting". Forcescience.org. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Court Gives Oscar Grant's Father OK To Sue Ex-BART Cop For Fatal Shooting « CBS San Francisco". Sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com. 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Violence after California police shooting trial verdict – BBC News". Bbc.com. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ Bulwa, Demian (January 30, 2009). "Skeptical judge grants bail to former BART cop". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on February 3, 2009.
- ↑ "Sources: Supervisors told to falsify reserve deputy's training records; department announces internal review – Tulsa World: Homepage1". Tulsaworld.com. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
- ↑ "Video of fatal shooting by reserve deputy shown at Sheriff's Office press conference – Tulsa World: Crimewatch". Tulsaworld.com. Retrieved 2015-05-02.