Firearms 101 with Doc Whetstone
On February 22, 2024 NACOLE welcomed firearms expert Doc Whetstone to provide basic information on firearms for the non-shooter oversight professional. The presentation includes the basic nomenclature of the various types of firearms, vocabulary, ballistics, combat considerations and the realities of weapon effectiveness. Viewers will leave the session with a better understanding of how firearms work, how to interpret information contained in police reports regarding weapons, weapon use and survival tactics. The oversight professional will be given the tools and knowledge to craft reports or make public statements that use industry standard terms and descriptions.
Warning: This webinar and follow-up discussion provide participants a frank and open discussion of firearms and their effect on humans. While efforts were made to minimize the psychological impact, some participants may find the material disturbing.
Thomas Whetstone, Ed.M., Ph.D., CPO
Dr. Whetstone (Analyst, Louisville Metro Office of Inspector General) has been involved in criminal justice in various roles since 1974. After leaving military service he worked as a dispatcher, a Crime Scene Investigator, a Police Officer and Sergeant. He has been involved in police training and education since 1978. He has additionally served as faculty with the University of Illinois Police Training Institute and on staff at several tactical training facilities. In 1984 Dr. Whetstone designed and implemented the first known comprehensive Police Patrol Rifle program in the USA. Dr. Whetstone was one of the first Certified Master Firearms Instructors in the State of Illinois and is a recent certificate holder as a Use of Force Instructor from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC). Dr. Whetstone obtained both his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Illinois College of Education while he was still employed as a police sergeant with the Urbana, IL Police Department. He is a former faculty member at the Southern Police Institute and served a term as a Governor appointed member of the Kentucky Parole Board. In 2004 he served as the Director of the Ar Ramadi Police Academy in Anbar Province, Iraq. Dr. Whetstone is a published author in both academic and practitioner press, and his research has focused on issues directly affecting police personnel and policy. Dr. Whetstone is a member of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) and the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE) and recently became a Certified Practitioner of Oversight (CPO) holder.