Trainer aims to cut down on domestic violence

Meer has taken action to help make the change by bringing Marcus Bruning, domestic crisis intervention instructor, to the community last week to train local law enforcement officers advanced dynamics of battering and domestic violence and the impact of response.

“I provided several case studies of victimization and described the best practices in intervention,” Bruning told The Journal of his training techniques.

Bruning said his program expresses a keynote address on the importance of a coordinated community response in domestic crisis intervention. “I love to facilitate trainings and make a difference in the way people understand and respond to investigations and victimization,” he said.

Meer said bringing Bruning to the community was made possible from funding received through an Otter Bremer Foundation grant in December.

“We’re putting a big chunk of (the grant) to coordinating community response,” Meer noted. “Marcus was recommended to us and he is the first step.”

Bruning has been involved in law enforcement for more than 22 years — the last 19 years he has served as a deputy sheriff for St. Louis County.

“My current assignment for the sheriff’s office is supervising deputy sheriff,” Bruning said. “I oversee the agency’s emergency communications and emergency management divisions.”

As a certified instructor through the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Bruning assisted in writing curriculum for national domestic violence and criminal intelligence programs and a domestic violence curriculum for the National Sheriff’s Association.  

Bruning’s experience as a trainer and consultant came when 10 years ago, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office received a grant from the United States Department of Justice and was charged with writing a model policy for the country on how to respond to a domestic violence incidents in a rural setting.

“The Department of Justice assigned the task of training the advanced techniques developed to law enforcement officers across the country to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center,” Bruning said. “I was selected to assist in writing the curriculum for the training program and then contracted as an adjunct instructor to train law enforcement officers across the nation. This contract led to me starting my consulting and training business and has expanded to several other training institutions nationally.”

He added that the model policy has been adopted by more than 3,500 agencies across the country.  

Last week’s stop in Borderland had Bruning focusing on working with local officers and Koochiching County Attorney Jeff Naglosky on developing new tactics and techniques to conduct self defense and aggressor assessments.

“(My goal) was to challenge officers to contemplate the impact of their response to have a greater understanding of battering and victimization and how to help and develop new skills to make a difference,” he explained.

Bruning said he believes the experience was a positive one and hopes to return to the Falls to conduct additional, advanced training.

“I am confident the coordinated efforts of the criminal justice system and the community-based advocacy provided by Friends Against Abuse will make a significant difference in helping victims from around the region and holding offenders accountable for their actions,” Bruning concluded. “Together, we are making a difference.”