To reduce injuries to cops and suspects, Torrance’s Gracie University brings Brazilian jiujitsu to police

Tucked into the corner of a business plaza only a minute’s drive from downtown Torrance, an unassuming building is headquarters for Gracie University, a martial arts academy that local to federal officers arrive to learn defensive techniques.

After the severe beating of Rodney King by officers in 1991, the Los Angeles Police Department brought in Ultimate Fighting Championship co-founder Rorion Gracie as an expert consultant to teach tactics of Brazilian jiujitsu suitable for interactions with civilians in a nonviolent way, said Rener Gracie, one of Rorion’s sons and now Gracie University’s CEO.

Other departments followed.

“We’ve been here for 25 years doing this but it wasn’t until post-George Floyd that we saw a massive surge in terms of interest from agencies trying to get their officers better trained,” said Rener Gracie, who is in partnership with brother Ryron. “They were desperate for a solution, civilians were desperate for a solution, and jiujitsu is where they landed.”

Rener, 40, is the grandson of Helio Gracie, who along with his older brother Carlos Gracie, modified and adapted the techniques of Japanese jiujitsu into a form called Brazilian jiujitsu, a grappling martial art that teaches practitioners to utilize their leverage, grip, and position to control a resistant opponent — including those who may be larger or stronger.

Rorion Gracie left Brazil for for America in 1978 and began teaching classes out of his Hermosa Beach garage. As demand for classes increased, the Gracie family opened its first jiujitsu academy, in 1989, in Hermosa Beach. By the early 2000s, the demand paved the way for Gracie Survival Tactics, a specialized law-enforcement training program now based in Torrance. The course aims to create a de-escalation culture among police departments, fostering calm decision-making to reduce injuries to officers and civilians alike.

(Overall, the Gracie brothers mostly teach those who just want to learn the sport. “We (Gracie University) are comprised of a global network of over 250 Certified Training Centers, all of which are operated by instructors who’ve been personally certified by my brother and I in Torrance,” Rener Gracie said. The extended Gracie family has opened up various other training facilities in Southern California that are separate entities.)

“Historically, and today, it remains true in many agencies: Officers in America are disastrously under-trained,” Rener Gracie said. “It’s shocking how few hours they get. Some states have zero annual training requirements for a police officer who is interacting with the public physically on a daily basis.”

Police in California are only expected to complete a minimum of four hours in the use of reasonable force per year, according to the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), although individual agencies can require more.

“We don’t teach any real striking,” said Tom Chuckerel, a Gracie University instructor. “We’re very, ‘Manage the distance, manage the damage.’ If you can manage the distance between the suspect, you can manage the damage.”

The course doesn’t teach neck restraints as a use-of-force option, in compliance with POST, the state agency that sets training standards for police officers. But officers do learn how to defend against neck restraints if they were to be placed in one by a suspect, said Charlie Fernandez, director of Gracie Survival Tactics.

Agencies that have sent employees to Gracie University include Homeland Security, the New Jersey Police Training Commission, the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, and all five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, Gracie officials said.

Attendees, usually police-defense instructors from their respective departments, spend five days at Gracie University, training a total of 30 hours. The cost is $1,200, usually picked up by the department but sometimes by the officer. The cops often return to their agencies and teach the techniques to personnel there.

Techniques taught in Gracie Survival Tactics factor in weapon retention and handcuffing procedures and take into account the chance an officer’s mobility is limited because of his or her uniform and equipment.

Peter Hanink, an assistant professor in the Sociology Department at Cal Poly Pomona who studies interactions between police and the public, said there are no official statistics for how often police force results in a death, or how often force is used at all.

“Is it better to use submission holds than bullets? Of course!” he said. “But will that make excessive force less common? That’s much less certain.”

Hanink said it seems more likely that cases involving unnecessary deadly force were the result of poor judgment, such as using force longer than it was required, rather than inadequate training. Many police agencies across the country require other officers to step in and stop an officer from using excessive force, he added.

Placentia Sgt. Jason Alcala took an interest in the program after seeing how effective martial arts was for his son.

To the sergeant, the biggest takeaway from bringing jiujitsu fundamentals to policing is a safer environment for suspects and officers.

Sgt. Alcala intended to introduce jiujitsu training to his department. He hopes to inspire other officers to train on their days off.

“Using jiujitsu is a much more humane way of taking people into custody and keeping them under control,” Alcala said. “By and large, you don’t have to strike suspects, it minimizes damage to both the officer and suspect, and it’s a good conditioning tool.”