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More than 230 Arkansas National Guardsmen and central Arkansas law enforcement officers trained Aug. 2, 2025, at North Little Rock’s Burns Park to complete required biennial training to ensure Guardsmen and law enforcement are in step and ready to respond if a civil disturbance event occurs.
Arkansas State Police, North Little Rock, Little Rock, and Conway police departments joined forces with Guardsmen from the 189th Airlift Wing, 188th Security Forces Squadron, and the 216th Military Police Company to train on de-escalation, limited visibility, gas masks, infrastructure protection, tear gas and other non-lethal systems.
“Joint Domestic Operations preparedness is paramount to the state of Arkansas in the event our agencies are required to respond to a real-world crisis or civil disturbance in one of our urban centers,” said Maj. Nathan Sosebee, 188th Security Forces Squadron commander and lead planner for the exercise. “It is critical to train as a joint force to ensure the safety of our communities and the rights of our citizens are protected, while at the same time upholding law and order according to Arkansas state laws and the U.S. Constitution.”
The National Guard Quick Response Force consists of the 189th Security Forces Squadron, 188th SFS, and the 216th MP Co. Those military units are required to train together annually, according to an Arkansas National Guard concept plan. The military units are required to conduct a validation exercise every other year with the Arkansas State Police since the QRF’s establishment in 2016.
“We are grateful to have a large-scale training opportunity that will put our prior training to the test,” said Sgt. Justin Cross, North Little Rock Investigations Division sergeant and commander of the North Little Rock Police Dept. Special Response Team. “Our Special Operations teams (SRT, SWAT, CNT and UAS) train separately and together on a regular basis in preparation for critical incidents. Training events like this are very instructive on if our safety equipment, communications devices, tactics, procedures, and ability to deploy with each other and with other agencies are effective.”
Exercise participants were put through the paces where they faced real-world situations in the past.
“We will have critical infrastructure to be protected,” Sosebee said. “We will have bridges and overpasses to be cleared of protestors.”
The exercise accounted for simulated injuries to friendly forces that prompted an emergency medical response.
“Each of these have occurred in the real-world events of the past nine years,” he said.
Opposing forces for the exercise were played by on-duty military and civilian police officers dressed in civilian attire and performed as aggressors in the scenarios.
Exercise planning was comprehensive and took place the previous 10 months with inputs from all the participating agencies.
“The exercise has built into the most robust event we have had since the state formed a Domestic Operations Response Force in 2016,” Sosebee said.
Civilian law enforcement agencies were appreciative of the opportunity to train together.
“My team and agency are very fortunate to have agency partners such as the Arkansas National Guard to work together, train together, learn together, and prepare to keep the citizens of central Arkansas safe together,” said Cross.
The Arkansas National Guard’s QRF has been called to state active duty twice in recent history. It was called to duty and stationed in West Memphis, Ark., as a precautionary measure to support Arkansas State Police in January 2023 in response to the death of Memphis, Tenn., resident Tyre Nichols; and it was called to state active duty in May 2020 and deployed for nine days to support Arkansas State Police in the vicinity of the state Capitol building after the death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
The Arkansas National Guard assumes support roles to augment civil authorities, where needed and directed by the governor, to help in a crisis.
| Date Taken: | 08.04.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 08.04.2025 13:45 |
| Story ID: | 544695 |
| Location: | NORTH LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 133 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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