By now, if you’re the sort of person who reads a blog about policing, you’ve likely seen the video taken by a passenger on a United Airlines flight, showing another passenger being dragged out of his seat and down the aisle of the plane, his glasses askew and his lip bloodied. This video has provoked outrage (both in the US and in China), calls for a boycott, and (of course) parody videos.
Here are the details: A United Airlines flight was overbooked and needed to make room for airline employees who needed to fly. Announcements were made on the plane asking for volunteers to be bumped, with an offer of $800. (Note: depending on the resulting arrival time, that’s probably significantly less than they are required to compensate for an involuntary bump.) There were no takers, even after a manager boarded the plane and explained that it would not be taking off until room was made.
Finally, they reportedly allowed a computer to make the selection, choosing four people at random to be involuntarily bumped. Three left without incident; the fourth, the unidentified man in the video, stated that he was a doctor and had to see patients in the morning, and refused to leave. Eventually Chicago Department of Aviation officers were called in, and the rest is visible on the video.
It’s reported that at one point, I believe after this video, the man ran back onto the plane before ultimately being carried out on a stretcher.
United originally issued a non-apology for the overbooking, but is now stating that “no one should ever be mistreated this way.”
The usual caution
Videos seldom, if ever, tell the whole story. This is especially true of cell phone videos like this, for a simple reason: people are only going to film stuff that is worthy of being filmed. There is, to my knowledge, no video of the repeated announcements that they airline needed to make room on the flight. There is no video of airline employees negotiating with the passenger regarding his removal. There is no video of the police officers arriving and speaking with the man. The video begins as the situation is escalating to a use of force.
We do not know how long or fervently any of these people tried–or didn’t–to get the man to leave the flight peacefully. It could be they were pleading with him for over an hour (the flight was ultimately delayed two hours); it could be they made no effort to negotiate at all and simply dragged him off the flight. Everyone seems to be assuming the latter, but that this point I don’t think we can assume either way. However, we can still use this as a chance to talk about conflict de-escalation.
Ask, tell, make
There’s a mantra that will be familiar to most police officers: Ask, tell, make.
First, you ask someone to do what you need them to do: “Sir, will you please step out of the car?”
Second, you tell them to do it: “Step out of the car, now.”
Third, you make them do it: Physically removing someone from the car.
Those with the mantra in mind will probably traverse these steps quickly; if you’re thinking “ask, tell, make,” then the ask and tell parts may just be there for cover, so you can show you tried. Anyone who’s been a police officer for more than five minutes knows there are ways they can “negotiate” that will move a suspect away from compliance and necessitate an arrest or use of force.
The “Ask, tell, make” mindset comes from a school of thought that says the authority of a police officer must be absolute and unquestioned; getting dragged into an argument weakens the officer’s authority and command presence, prolongs the situation, and puts everyone involved in increased danger. Sometimes this is true. But sometimes, it’s more about the officer’s pride than it is about controlling the situation. My school of thought is, a win is a win.
The power of listening
The problem with “ask, tell, make,” and its more useful (but still lacking) cousin, verbal judo, is that they are stimulus only models. Meaning, the officer is the stimulus, and there is an expected response from the suspect. It’s easy for officers to learn and do because talking and arguing are easy for most people. The problem is, the same impulse that makes the officer want to lay out the terms is also present in the suspect, and they want to be heard too.
The other problem is these tools can only be used when there is power to back them up. When was the last time you watched a TV show where a hostage negotiator was using an “ask, tell, make” approach? They can’t safely carry out the “make,” so they’re willing to do a lot more talking.
People don’t like feeling powerless–my theory is that’s why they can get so shitty when they get a traffic ticket. So using a strategy that is transparently backed up by the always-present implied threat of force, however effectively that strategy is applied, may create more pressure than necessary.
Ninety-nine percent of people know when they’re on the losing side of a situation. They know if the airline wants them off the plane, they have to get off the plane. But they’re upset–and what people who are upset want is to be heard.
If I respond to a trespass situation–one where a property owner wants someone gone, which is essentially what this is–I don’t use “Ask, tell, make.” I let the suspect air their grievances. Why did they come here? What are they upset about? What’s their side of the story? The complainant may be annoyed because they want the person gone now, but the imposition of a little extra time is a small price to resolve the situation in a dignified way. And once that story is told, and I have allowed the suspect to say what they came to say, they’re much more receptive to listening to me. At which point I explain that they are required to leave.
The caveat here is that the situation must first be controlled and safe; if people are shouting, stepping at each other, moving around, etc., that needs to be taken care of first. It’s amazing how effectively a strong show of force can de-escalate a situation where softer techniques have failed.
And the unpleasant last resort is always the same: If despite all efforts, a person refuses to voluntarily comply with the law, giving up and walking away is not one of the options enjoyed by the police. It was United’s right to deny that man boarding (yes, even after boarding), and they chose to exercise that right. Eventually, one way or another, no matter what, he was coming off the plane.
Final thoughts
I’ll say once more, we don’t know what was tried before the video started. I’m using it as a conversation starter, not a foil.
The toughest “ask, tell, make” talk is found in squad rooms and internet forums. On the street, while officers’ spoken philosophies may be unmoving, their actions are more admirable.
In my experience, cops are very good at this. I cannot count the number of times I would have been legally justified in using force, but talked my way out of it, and I’m still learning. I work with plenty of old timers who don’t have any of the hippy dippy liberal education I do, and they’re better at this than I am. They almost never have to put hands on anyone, because they can talk their way to a peaceful resolution nearly every time. But peaceful resolutions don’t get filmed by bystanders, and they certainly don’t make the news.
That said, we need to pursue more communication training. Talking is, with the possible exception of driving, the most used tool on a police officer’s belt. We need more in-depth, data-driven, expert-informed understanding of negotiation techniques. We need to consider the line between keeping control of a situation and protecting our pride.
And civilians should always remember that we employ police because sometimes, someone will refuse to voluntarily comply with the law, and the current will of our society is that their disruption not be allowed to continue. Most people on that flight, though indignant at the denied boarding and the apparent treatment of the passenger, would not have been amenable to his continued refusal causing them additional delay and missed flights. Just as most people whose property is being trespassed upon are not willing to let the trespasser stay as long as he likes. Ultimately, really at the discretion of the suspect, a situation like this can end with physical force. And that is never pretty.