A controversial police instructor who teaches officers to kill people without guilt or hesitation is scheduled to hold a two-day seminar at a church in Novi next month.
The Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police (MACP) invited Dave Grossman to speak at Oak Pointe Church on May 26 and May 27.
The 64-year-old former Army ranger and author trains police in “killology,” his testosterone-laced psychology of killing, which he calls “righteous violence.”
He urges police to tap into their inner predator and kill without hesitation.
In a video that recently went viral, Grossman tells a class that police “have the best sex” after shooting a civilian.
“Both partners are very invested in some very intense sex,” he says. “There’s not a whole lot of perks that come with this job. You find one, relax and enjoy it.”
The class chuckles.
In his book On Combat, Grossman describes police as sheepdogs, “a warrior, someone who is walking the hero’s path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.”
Criminals, he said, are “wolves” who “feed on the sheep without mercy.”
“Sheepdog” has become a popular reference for police, who see themselves as protectors warding off evil in a dark world.
Shelby Township Police Chief Robert Shelide referenced Grossman’s metaphor on his now-deleted Twitter account @sheepdawg711. Shelide was caught using the account last year to advocate police brutality.
The officer who killed Philando Castile, a 32-year-old Black man, in Minnesota in July 2016 attended one of Grossman’s seminars two years prior.
Neither the MACP nor the Oak Pointe Church would return a call from Metro Times seeking comment.
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This article appears in Apr 21-27, 2021.