Saint Leo University, in partnership with the Rotary clubs in Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, and Hillsborough counties, has joined with the Tampa Bay Area Alliance for Peace & Conflict Resolution on the First 30 SecondsSM project, which strives to abate any conflict that may result from a police-civilian encounter that gets out of hand.

For most, being stopped by a police officer can be an unpleasant experience. But to young men and women who have just recently started driving, their first experience with a police officer pulling them over can range anywhere from mildly unnerving to an all-out full panic response. It is in those first 30 seconds of a police-initiated traffic stop that things can go terribly wrong if either party reacts the wrong way.