is extremely humbling” added Chief
Sianez. The presentation ended with
Captain Worrall answering over a
dozen questions from the community
members in the room.
Buena Park Police Department
was not sure how many people from
the community would attend and
aimed low, estimating attendance at 20
people. The final attendee count was
92. In addition to the public, those in
attendance included Buena Park City
Council members, the Orange County
Fire Authority, police chiefs from
surrounding agencies, PTA members
and the media. According to one of
the community members attending,
“It was evident that a lot of thought
and planning went into this program.
It was so professionally done, and in
a format that really connected with
those who were there. I kept looking
around the audience and everyone
was so engaged.”
Chief Corey Sianez and his two
Captains, Gary Worrall and Gary
Hendricks presenting at the community
meeting focusing on the Understanding
Police Use of Force program.
14
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a suspect is considered compliant vs.
non-compliant, what type of training
officers receive for specific incidents,
weapons used (lethal and non-lethal)
and the ever growing challenges that
each officer faces on a daily basis. In
addition, the presentation included
the use of force video scenario that
featured the enlisted member of
the community. The reaction from
the audience was to be expected.
“When you see someone you know
from the community placed in the
position we as officers are in daily, it
The presentation was extremely
well received by the community
members attending, more so than
the Buena Park Police Department
had expected. Community members
flooded the chief’s inbox with
feedback regarding the evening, with
examples including the following,
“What an excellent program last night,
with a great turnout. I am glad it was
filmed, and I am going to encourage
all my staff to watch it. I learned
much, but more importantly, I left
with such a great sense of pride for
our police department. Please pass
along my congratulations to your
team for a great job!”
Buena Park’s outreach to the
community to help educate them
about police use of force and to allow
them the opportunity to ask questions
of officers helped strengthen the
department’s relationship with the
community in a very positive way. ■