(Newswire.net — August 28, 2015) — During his 12 years of service, a former Arizona police officer killed 6 people. James Peterson now teaches fellow police officers and soldiers how to shoot and kill without hesitation.
James Peters, a former police officer with the Scottsdale PD, applied for “accidental disability retirement” in 2012 after he shot a 50-year-old man in the head with a rifle, Russia Today reported.
John Loxas, was playing with his baby grandson in his arms when officer Peterson approached them. Loxas had a record of threatening neighbors with firearms, so Peters assumed he reached for his gun. After Peters shot Loxas in the head with his rifle, he learned the black object in Loxan’s pocket was actually a cellphone. He stated later that his action was necessary to protect the baby.
After this event, Peters retired from the police with a $4,500 monthly pension and the Loxas’ family received a $4.5 million settlement, RT reported.
Less than a month after retirement, Tempe-based company called VirTra Systems hired Peters finding him a perfect choice for promoting their ‘kill or be killed’ simulator. Peters sells the simulator and instructs customers, police and military serviceman, how to handle themselves in a firefight, reported the Arizona-based blog Down and Drought.
VirTra Systems developed the V-300 simulator that places a trainee between five video screens simulating a 300-degree view to the environment with realistic audio. Software can simulate various dangerous situations of imminent threats and expect the trainee to react immediately. If not, he would be killed.
Every time a trainee sustains a wound in the simulator, a specially designed vest with electrodes jolts the user, simulating a hit. If the trainee doesn’t want to experience the pain, they would have to react faster and eliminate the (potential) threat.
“The trainee knows they could experience pain during training, so they take the training far more seriously, leading to more effective training. In addition, the extra stress and pressure during training helps better prepare the trainee for a real life or death situation where a mistake could have dire consequences,” according to the press release.
The controversial project is heavily disputed by the public saying that the program teaches subjects to ‘shoot first and ask later.’
VirTra Systems says it supplies its products to some 200 police and military organizations around the world. V-300s may cost up to $300,000 each.