EMANUEL KAPELSOHN

Police Patrol Rifle Instructor Course

Mansfield University Public Safety Training Institute

Mansfield, PA – October 12-16, 2026

 

Course Description: This 5-day, 42-hour course will certify the police firearms instructor to train law enforcement officers in use of the semi-automatic patrol rifle. Course time is divided evenly between classroom and range. There will be two dim-light range sessions, tentatively planned for Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Topics will include firearms safety, equipment selection, sighting systems, agency policies, ballistics, marksmanship and gun-handling skills, training reflexive skills, loading, firing, reloading, stoppage clearance, transition to handgun, engaging multiple targets, firing while moving, turning/moving targets, use of cover and other basic tactics, dim light firing with and without flashlights and weapon-mounted lights, legal liability overview, lesson plan development, documentation of training, and teaching techniques for classroom and range. Student coaching and student teaching are required, plus a small amount of written homework. Students must fire instructor-level scores on daylight and dim-light qualification courses, and pass a written test. Prior certification as a police firearms instructor is recommended, but not required.

 

Equipment & Materials Required: The student will need a semi-automatic patrol rifle (AR-15/M4, Mini-14 or equivalent) with at least 3 magazines. The rifle must be equipped with a sling.  A pouch or other means of carrying at least one spare rifle magazine on the student’s person is recommended.  Rifles may have aperture (“iron”) sights, red dot optics (in which case backup iron sights – “BUIS” - are recommended), or low-power variable optics (“LVPO”). Use of fixed-power magnifying telescopic sights is questionable, and fixed magnification over 2.0 power is not advised. Also required: duty handgun with at least 3 magazines; holster, belt, and magazine pouch; handcuffs and cuff case; cleaning materials for rifle and handgun; flashlight capable of illuminating targets to at least 25 yards, ear protection, eye protection of wraparound or side-panel design (protection level ANSI Z87.1 or higher is recommended - sunglasses will not work at night, and are of questionable eye protection value in the daytime), baseball cap or other hat with brim, or sport visor); at least 650 rounds of factory-loaded, training-type rifle ammunition (generic fmj training ammunition is fine, but reloads, handloads, and commercially “remanufactured” ammunition are not acceptable); 10 dummy rounds of appropriate caliber for your rifle; 100 rounds of factory-loaded training-type handgun ammunition; note taking materials; Sharpie or other felt-tip marker for marking targets. Recommended but not required: body armor, sunscreen, insect repellent, water bottle, energy snacks, raingear and warm clothes/gloves (we shoot in the rain and cold). Knee pads/elbow pads optional. Students should arrive with rifles zeroed at 50 or 100 yards, or not over 3” high at 100 yds.  Also recommended but not required:  laptop or other computer for writing lesson plans and other homework assignments, and for reviewing thumb drive of resource materials distributed in class. However, homework assignments that are neatly handwritten are also acceptable.

 

The Lead Instructor, Emanuel Kapelsohn, has been certified as a firearms instructor by the FBI, NRA, Glock, H&K, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the NJ Police Training Commission, and others. His certifications include police handgun, shotgun, patrol rifle, precision rifle, automatic weapons, and tactical firearms. A Staff Instructor at Col. Jeff Cooper’s American Pistol Institute (“Gunsite”), he was an “A” Class IPSC combat pistol competitor, rated Expert with rifle and shotgun and Distinguished Expert with pistol and revolver, is a graduate of the US Army Marksmanship Training Unit’s Police Countersniper Rifle Course at Ft. Benning, the IACP Precision Rifle Course at Ft. Dix, Clint Smith’s Urban Rifle Course, and many other rifle programs. In addition to firearms, he has been certified as an instructor in defensive tactics, handgun retention, pepper spray, baton, Taser Master Instructor, less lethal impact munitions, psycho-motor skill design instructor, is certified in executive protection, pursuit/counterterrorist driving, shooting scene reconstruction, as a Force Science Analyst and Advanced Specialist in Force Science. He has trained and certified thousands of police officers and instructors nationwide over the past 47 years; has written over 120 published articles and longer works; has served for nearly 40 years on the Board of Directors of IALEFI (Int’l Assoc. of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors); served on the MPOETC’s curriculum development committee that designed the Act 120 Police Academy Curriculum used throughout Pennsylvania for 16 years, on the MPOETC Patrol Rifle Standards Development Committee; and on the team that designed and implemented the mandatory in-service training program in “Police Use of Force” taught to 24,000 officers statewide in 2016. He trained instructors for MPOETC at the PA State Police Academy at Hershey and at Ft. Indiantown Gap, and has served as a reserve deputy sheriff in two states over the past 28 years. Agencies for which he has trained and certified instructors include the New York State Police, Oregon State Police, Louisiana State Police, Missouri Highway Patrol, Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police, Calgary Police Service, Metropolitan Toronto Police Service, and the Police Departments of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Trenton, Jersey City, Atlantic City, Miami, Dallas, Jacksonville, Phoenix, Seattle, Tacoma, Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office, North Carolina Justice Academy, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, BATF (multiple programs), and others. He is also a practicing attorney with degrees from Yale University and Harvard Law School, and has testified as an expert witness in officer-involved shooting cases in courts nationwide for the past 43 years.

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Schedule:

 

Monday 10/12/26: 0800-1700*

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Report prior to 0800 to Mansfield University Public Safety Training Institute, Doane Center, 65 Hamilton Street, Mansfield, PA 16933

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Tuesday, 10/13/26: 0800-1700*

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Wednesday, 10/14/26: 1200-2100*

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Thursday, 10/15/26: 1200-2100*

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Friday, 10/16/26: 0800-1700* 

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*Each day includes 8-9 hrs. of training, plus a 1-hr meal break. All times are approximate. Hours may be adjusted based on weather or other factors. *

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Questions? Call instructor Manny Kapelsohn at 610-360-7053, or email to: peregrine@ptd.net​