New Zealand's top police crisis negotiator reveals the everyday drama of being a cop: the lives saved, the lives lost, and the extreme pressure to perform in tough and confronting circumstances. Lance Burdett was in the police force for 22 years, in a variety of high-level roles: head of the negotiation team; running the 111 call centre; intelligence management; protection squad; and emergency responders. He worked on some of New Zealand's best-known cases, such as the Jan Molenaar case, where Lance was flown in to head the negotiation team, and the George Baker prison hostage negotiation with the man who murdered Liam Ashley. His daily police life included frequent suicide interventions in high-profile cases, which were common call-outs for the negotiation team. Lance talks about the different negotiation styles and challenges these cases demanded. He was involved in Australia/New Zealand anti-terrorism training, and played the role of terrorist over several days on-site. His story shows how quickly you can become indoctrinated and 'hate' your 'enemies'. Lance also underwent FBI training in Washington where he found that New Zealand's negotiation skills held up well. Behind the Tape tells what it's really like to be a cop: the fear, the excitement, the stress, the everyday drama, the skills developed, the lives saved, the lives lost. It's gritty, tough and confronting...
