New Mexico National Guard Soldiers share weapons retention techniques with Costa Rican law enforcement officials

Photo By 1st Lt. Anna Doo | Three highly-skilled noncommissioned officers of the New Mexico Army National Guard shared decades of experience and knowledge in combatives and weapons retention tactics with more than 30 Costa Rican first responders. Police officers, tourist law enforcement officials, narcotics officers, and members of the Costa Rica Coast Guard spent a few days in late March gaining hands-on education they can use in their daily jobs as part of the National Guard's State Partnership Program. These ongoing Subject Matter Expert Exchange opportunities benefit the host nation as well as the members of the partnered National Guard state. (Released, Photo by Eladio Ramirez, U.S. Embassy)  

SAN JOSE, SJ, COSTA RICA

03.26.2015

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Anna Doo 

Joint Force Headquarters - New Mexico National Guard

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – Three highly-skilled noncommissioned officers of the New Mexico Army National Guard shared decades of experience and knowledge in combatives and weapons retention tactics with more than 30 Costa Rican first responders. Police officers, tourist law enforcement officials, narcotics officers and members of the Costa Rica Coast Guard spent a few days in late March gaining hands-on education they can use in their daily jobs as part of the National Guard's State Partnership Program. The New Mexico National Guard and Costa Rica have been partners in this program since 2006 and have conducted numerous exchanges of ideas, tactics, techniques and knowledge.

Master Sgt. Jesus Holguin, Staff Sgt. Matthew Concha and Sgt. Nicolas Escandon traveled to the capital of Costa Rica and were hosted by Capt. Melvin Sanchez, head of operations for Escuela Nacional de Policia. Escandon said Sanchez took care of the trio so well with everything from daily coffee breaks to providing materials that it truly motivated him to participate in this subject matter expert exchange.

Concha echoed these sentiments saying, "The upper echelon of the chain of command was really involved in the program. They are very appreciative of what we have to offer. They are more than accommodating. They provided us the location, the materials and made sure everyone was on time. Without them, it wouldn't have been a success, especially Capt. Sanchez."

All three of the guardsmen are seasoned veterans when it comes to working within the State Partnership Program. Both Holguin and Concha have traveled to Costa Rica four times to share their expertise on weapons retention, combatives and border security checkpoint operations. Escandon is no rookie either, with this being his third time showing his Central American counterparts lessons learned in combatives and first aid.

"This [program] is such an important tool for the National Guard," Escandon said. "When it comes to the times of uncertainty as a nation we face, having an ally is such an important thing. That's exactly what this program does – builds alliances with Latin American and other nations around the world that we don't necessarily have open relationships with. The willingness to exchange ideas, to remember the brotherhood that exists between human beings, can be reflected in this partnership."

The ideas exchanged in this particular episode focused on direct-contact combat and weapons retention. Concha built the three-day program based on the Modern Army Combatives Program, added weapons retention techniques and sprinkled in highlights requested by the law enforcement officials. Holguin said there has been a trend just beginning to emerge of local police officers losing positive control of their firearms to attackers, resulting in officers being shot. Costa Rican laws do not allow for use of deadly force and thus being capable of maintaining positive control of their weapons will help mitigate the rise of this issue.

In addition to the hands-on instruction of methods to retain their weapons, the first responders were shown best practices for correct body posture when engaging in a stand-off. Concha said one of the takeaways by the Costa Ricans is the need to upgrade the holsters used on a daily basis from the current Velcro-secured soft material, to a sturdier, harder-to-open device. Escandon mentioned that many of the trained law enforcement personnel do not carry lethal weapons, thus the need for the mix of hand-to-hand techniques and weapons retention.

Language can be a barrier when conducting a cross-cultural exchange of ideas, but both Holguin and Escandon are fluent in Spanish, the main language in Costa Rica. Concha relied heavily on Escandon to translate the concepts. He said that there isn't always a direct translation of the idea, but that Escandon did an excellent job of translating in a manner the participants could understand. Having Spanish-speaking Soldiers within the formation of New Mexico National Guard who know the material made this comprehensive exchange of ideas possible.

The cultural exchange was decidedly two-way. Concha spoke of experiencing the Costa Rican culture, hearing how they operate, and the mindset of the first responders being based on a peacetime environment. This is in contrast to the military mindset with which National Guardsmen are trained. Escandon also said some of the tactics and techniques he learned within the MACP curriculum needed to be translated into the civilian focus, as opposed to the military. He also said the Costa Rican officers attending the classes had a solid foundation to build upon, especially when it came to dealing directly with the civilian population.

All three of the New Mexico Guardsmen felt the knowledge they imparted to their counterparts will be used, implemented, and built upon. Holguin said it would be a positive step in the future to conduct follow-on exchanges to build upon this foundational knowledge.

Escandon agreed and said, "It would be great to have more exchanges of ideas with more personnel. They like what we bring to the table. They like the different ideas. What we stress when we go is that they need to learn everything that we are showing them so they can show their own coworkers."

The history of the State Partnership Program between New Mexico National Guard and Costa Rica has been rich with the sharing of knowledge gained through experience. Similar issues plague the two entities and the exchanges of best practices, what has worked and hasn't, and the ongoing relationship will only continue to grow and become even more robust with shared information. After nearly two decades of war, the citizen-Soldiers of the New Mexico National Guard are ready and capable of bringing their combat expertise and their civilian skills to their partners in Costa Rica.

• Date Taken: 03.26.2015
• Date Posted: 04.17.2015 12:31
• Story ID: 160365
• Location: SAN JOSE, SJ, CR
• Hometown: SANTA FE, NM, US