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Lancaster Station's Unit Orders / Unit Orders 16-20

LCS Unit Order 16


LCS Unit Order 15
LCS Unit Order 17

LANCASTER STATION

UNIT ORDER # 16

 

AUTOMATIC LOCKING SEATBELTS

 

PURPOSE:

 

The purpose of this unit order is to establish protocol regarding the proper way of securing prisoners in the rear seat of a patrol vehicle.

 

ORDER:

 

This Unit Order shall apply to all sworn personnel assigned to Lancaster Station.

 

Anytime a deputy places a prisoner in the rear seat of a patrol vehicle they shall immediately seatbelt the prisoner utilizing the Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR). This applies to Ford Crown Victoria’s, Ford Expeditions, and Chevrolet Tahoe’s only.  Chevrolet Caprice Classics have a different seatbelt system.

 

OBJECTIVE:

 

In recent years there has been an increase in prisoners breaking or dislodging side rear windows by turning in the seat to position him/herself in a position to kick the window.  Prisoners often unbuckle themselves due to the slack the seatbelt offers them.  Prisoners in recent past have also slipped their handcuffs to the front.  These actions could lead to a suspect’s escape and/or an assault to deputy personnel.

 

In an effort to prevent this from happening in the future, the use of the Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) will securely keep the rear passenger’s waist and shoulders firmly against the seat back. 

 

This will have a secondary benefit of less forward motion in the event of a front end collision before the vehicle’s sensitive (emergency) locking mode would normally engage.  The rear passenger will not be able to lean forward in the seat, as they normally do, thus preventing the passenger’s face from hitting the metal screen partition in the event of an abrupt stop or collision.

 

OVERVIEW:

 

What are ALR/ELR seat belts?  ELR, or emergency locking restraint retractors allow belt motion under normal driving conditions, and will stop belt motion during abrupt decelerations.  ALR/ELR retractors include both an ELR and an ALR, or automatic locking restraint mode which locks the belt at all times.  Seat belts in the ELR mode allow passengers to move freely and only lock on the event of an impact.  Seat belts in the ALR mode remain locked at all times to facilitate the use of child safety seats, but will also be effective in securing prisoners firmly against the seat back.

 

How to use the automatic locking mode

  • Buckle the combination lap and shoulder belt.
  • Grasp the shoulder portion and pull downward until the entire belt is fully extracted.
  • Allow the belt to retract.  As the belt retracts, you will hear a clicking sound.  This indicates the safety belt is now in the automatic locking mode.

 

When to use the automatic locking mode

  • Anytime a deputy places a prisoner in the rear seat of a patrol vehicle they shall immediately seatbelt the prisoner utilizing the ALR.  The Deputy must ensure the seatbelt is in ALR mode by grasping the shoulder portion of the seatbelt and making sure it does not release further.

 

How to disengage the automatic locking mode

  • Disconnect the combination lap/shoulder belt and allow it to retract completely to disengage the automatic locking mode and activate the vehicle sensitive (emergency) locking mode.