EXCLUSIVE: On the road with Qld's crack new police squad
FIRST ON 7: 7 News has been given unprecedented access on the front line with Queensland’s new crack police squad.
The specialist team, called the Mobile Response Capability (MRC), is made up of highly skilled officers from the Public Safety Response Team.
As part of a trial, they’re being sent to back-up general duties officers in dangerous situations across the south-east.
Members work in teams of four during peak times on the road.
“These officers are highly trained and they have specialist equipment, less than lethal force, so things are as safe as they can be in potentially dangerous situations,” Senior Sergeant Paul Dalton told 7 News.
Officers carry multiple weapons including pepperball guns that fire capsicum powder from a distance.
In the past month, they've responded to 200 jobs and have de-escalated 75 percent of violent cases mostly through talking.
The trial will last six months.