Beyond Booking: Crisis Intervention Edu-Larp

Debriefing after her first larp experience, the officer said:

“I didn’t realize before that while I’m trying to get the facts down for the form, I’m getting the facts but i’m missing so much important information that would actually be useful.”

She knew, entering the larp, that she was working a booking desk and needed to get my character (Sara)’s name, phone number, address, social, gang affiliation, etc. She also knew that Sara had been brought in for loitering and public intoxication.

What she didn’t know is that Sara was suicidal, having recently lost her husband and child in a car accident.

She stood, stiff and with her hands folded in front of her waist. I asked if she was praying for me, and said I didn’t deserve it and wouldn’t need it soon. She remained stiff and tall, and when Sara’s emotions showed through, the officer simply said, “are you okay? I just need the information, I’m not mad.”

Which, of course, set Sara off. I don’t care what you need, cop.

When she finished her session, the other police officers who had been in the room pointed out the things she had missed; Sara would frequently tear up when playing with her wedding ring. Sara said that she didn’t have a home without them—why didn’t the officer follow up on that?

One officer noted “you said you cared and Sara called you out on it and you didn’t change, didn’t try to connect with her, so you proved to her that you were lying.”

Another officer commented, “didn’t you notice how hopeless Sara felt? Hopelessness is a huge indicator of suicidal thinking. When you asked if she was okay she laughed and then yelled at you that nothing’s okay and you just made a mark on your intake. You have someone here who’s clearly suicidal, but you only care about that intake, which means you’re likely going to send her to a cell and then those of us who interact with her next might say the wrong thing because we’re not prepared.”

The officer who had engaged in the larp broke down into tears. “I was so focused on my job and getting the facts that I forgot my job is to actually listen,” she later admitted.

I take that as an indicator of a successful first day of Crisis Intervention Training larp.

I hope she, and all the officers, use this lesson as they engage in scenarios and with characters throughout the rest of the week.