Hostage-Tactical Negotiators and SWAT

The presence of a highly trained and skilled tactical unit has been shown to substantially reduce the risk of injury and loss of life to citizens, police officers, and suspects, when called upon to assist in the resolution of critical incidents. With the rapid growth of the NW Arkansas region, infrastructure, and companies that stretch globally, the Bentonville Police Department ensures it's prepared to respond to all critical incidents within its city limits and to assist other agencies as needed. 

Critical incidents overall are considered low frequency in this area; however, they require numerous hours of additional training for each officer involved, along with specialized equipment, to always be ready.

Tactical Negotiator Team

The Bentonville Police Department's Tactical Negotiator Team(TNT), commonly referred to as a hostage negotiations, works in parallel with the departments tactical team. As the negotiator training and skills proved useful when dealing with barricaded and suicidal subjects, their role expanded to cover a multitude of other crisis situations. 

The Bentonville Police Department currently has (6) six tactical negotiators, all having received numerous hours of training and certifications. 

SWAT

The Bentonville Police Department SWAT team was created in 2000 to provide officers with additional specialized training to handle calls such as hostage negotiations, arrest of violent suspects who may be armed or barricaded, terrorism, high-risk warrants and other high-risk public safety threats. As of 2022, the team has expanded to (20) twenty officers.

  • Team Leader (1)
  • Assistant Team Leader (2)
  • Paramedic (2)
  • Precision rifle members (2)
  • Bomb Tech (2)  
  • Specialized team members (11) 

"Life saving organization"

The role of law enforcement in all cases is the protection of lives and property. Both teams continue to attend numerous hours of in-service training each month, along with attending state and national lectures, training, and conferences to ensure we our operating under the best practices.