In collaboration with global law firm Sheppard Mullin, the Georgetown Law Center for Innovations in Community Safety has established ABLE (Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement). This program aims to equip officers with the skills to proactively intervene, preventing harm and fostering a law enforcement culture supportive of peer intervention. Serving as a national hub for training, technical assistance, and research, ABLE strives to cultivate a police culture where officers routinely intervene and accept interventions to:
-
Prevent misconduct
-
Avoid police mistakes
-
Promote officer health and wellness
Drawing inspiration from Dr. Ervine Staub's training on the psychology of peace and violence, which helped officers curb unnecessary behavior, the EPIC (Ethical Policing is Courageous) peer intervention program was developed in 2014 through collaboration between Dr. Staub, consultants, and the New Orleans Police Department.
ABLE builds upon the success of EPIC and Dr. Staub's previous work by delivering practical, scenario-based training for police agencies. The focus is on strategies and tactics for effective peer intervention. ABLE also guides agencies and communities on the concrete measures required to establish and sustain a culture of peer intervention.