The Greer Police Department's Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT) is comprised of specially trained law enforcement personnel, who work in various divisions/units within the police department; team members respond to emergency critical incidents along with the departments Emergency Response Team.
Working in partnership with ERT, the CNT works to establish an ongoing dialog and rapport with the person(s) involved in the crisis and can be instrumental in safely resolving the situation and reducing the chances of injury and/or loss of life. Team members gather information on the people involved, compile profiles, interview witnesses, and analyze intelligence information. Such situations include negotiating with armed, barricaded, and/or suicidal subjects; incidents where a hostage(s) has been taken; as well as a variety of other crisis events that threaten the safety of the community. These unusual situations can be very difficult and unpredictable but can be effectively managed when utilizing CNT personnel and their equipment.
The Greer Police Department's Crisis Negotiation Team's mission is to seek out a peaceful resolution to violent situations through communication and listening techniques.
All of the members on the CNT are certified hostage negotiators through the Public Agency Training Council and many members have attended the FBI's Basic Crisis Negotiation Course. All CNT members are members of the South Carolina Crisis Negotiators Association and attend the yearly training conference to hone their negotiation skills through case studies and networking with other negotiators from the southeast.