LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A police officer’s daily dilemma is how to use words to save lives instead of a Taser or gun; at least, that’s what Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) said is at the center of its special de-escalation training.

However, department data shows officers fired their weapons more in 2020 than in 2019 by more than double.

A troubled man with a knife lunges toward officers frantically. That’s the scenario the people who developed the Integrating Communications, Assessment and Tactics (ICAT) program act out, in a simulation video. Through the example shown, officers learn how to use words to de-escalate the people they’re called to help or arrest.

ICAT is not specific to LMPD; it’s a de-escalation curriculum used at police departments across the country.

Another training video shows a real-life situation as an example of what officers should do; a South Carolina man is ready to jump off the side of a bridge.

“You’re just having a bad day, bud,” the officer’s body camera picks up the conversation. "You mind if I reach for your hand?”

After several minutes of talking, the man is safely brought down from the ledge. This is the kind of behavior Louisville officers study.

Within the ICAT training curriculum, the Critical Decision-Making Model shows how officers should think and make quick decisions. At the center, made priority is the sanctity of human life.

Andre Bottoms went through ICAT training at LMPD. Bottoms is a former LMPD officer, who retired last summer. He’s a believer in ICAT.

However, based on his experience in the training, Bottoms worries about people who were resistant to ICAT. He claims to have seen other officers refuse to accept it.  

“The training itself was good training...but officers need to practice it,” Bottoms said.

A recent top-to-bottom review of LMPD conducted by Hillard Heintze notes the successes LMPD has had through ICAT. The Hillard Heintze report shows that from 2018 to 2020, there was a 28.1% reduction in use of force, a 26.3% reduction in injuries to the public, and 36% fewer injuries to police.

But there was a noticeable increase in another category, last year. Data obtained by Spectrum News 1 through an open records request shows officers fired 122 rounds in 2020, compared to 59 in 2019. That’s an increase by more than double in one year.

LMPD hasn’t yet responded to questions following the data’s release. ICAT training only applies to situations where officers face weapons less lethal than firearms, like a baseball bat or knife.

“When someone has a firearm, it’s difficult to tell a police officer to gain distance,” LMPD Sgt. Justin Witt explained.

Witt teaches ICAT. He said it’s about learning things like “When to create distance from someone else…and when to put a barrier between you and somebody else to create more time to give [ourselves] a better opportunity for a successful or favorable outcome."

Included in the 122 rounds fired by officers in 2020, are those the officers involved in Breonna Taylor’s death fired. That makes up 34 of the shots fired.

Witt said there’s different training for officers for when they face someone with a firearm. Bottoms hopes this is the case, and the increase doesn’t mean resistance to training.

“Officers that resisted the training…nothing was, nothing was said to (them),” Bottoms said. “I distinctly remember going through the training and there was one officer in the class that I was in…he was like, ‘Well this ain’t gonna work.’"

Witt maintains that putting the training to use is not optional, and there is discipline for when officers violate procedure and training.

“They are then judged based off the training they had and what the policy was at the time. Then, based off the recommendations from the Professional Standards Unit, there's an opportunity for those officers to be re-trained,” Witt said.