No More Mugshots For Sniper Training, Florida Police Chief Says

The North Miami Beach Police Department has officially halted its sniper training program following a very public discovery of its practice of using old mugshots for target practice.

Chief J. Scott Dennis was quoted by PBS as saying the entire program is now under review and that future targets will be “commercially produced training images.”

The practice of using old mugshots in training came to light when National Guardswoman Valerie Deant happened to visit the same gun range police snipers use on the same day a practice was held, CBS Miami reported. It seems Deant noticed that one of the mugshots belonged to her brother Woody. The image had been struck by bullets, the station reported.

Woody Deant’s arrest occurred more than 15 years ago and involved a drag race that resulted in two deaths.

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“I do not deserve to be a target for sport, as a training exercise, or for any reason or neither does anyone else,” Woody Deant was quoted by CBS Miami as saying.

Dennis explained to NBC Miami that his department uses an array of photos for target practice, including not only blacks, but also whites and Hispanic males. The arrays are used for facial recognition drills, he told the station.

While Dennis has vowed that mugshots from his agency’s past arrests will no longer be used as training targets, he has said none of the individuals involved will be disciplined since “our polices were not violated,” NBC quoted him as saying.

That station also reported it checked in with federal and state law enforcement agencies to inquire about their sniper target practices. All of the agencies checked on reported they use commercially produced targets, not photos of humans for target practice.

It is currently unclear how long the department’s internal review of the training program will take.

What are your thoughts on the practice? Share them by commenting below.

Screenshot of the targets

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