A Primer on Peacemaking.

• Author: McClure, Megan
• Position: DEFUSING ANGER

It's a scene not unfamiliar to many legislators and legislative staff. An angry constituent walks through the door upset with his tax bill. He feels targeted and wants justice. His voice gets louder and louder as he becomes more agitated.

Or a legislative staffer gets fired for menacing behavior that would not stop despite many warnings. As she is escorted out the door, she yells to her colleagues that she wishes they were all dead.

No one goes to work anticipating a violent or negative interaction, whether it be with a member of the public or a co-worker. Jane, a legislative librarian who asked that we not use her real name, sure didn't. But one afternoon encounter changed all that.

"On a warm sunny day in June, not too long after the terrible incident at Columbine High School in Colorado, a very tall, thin man walked into the library wearing an oversized black trench coat," Jane says. "Immediately the two of us in the library sensed that something was dark about this person. He was muttering how the government had inserted some sort of antenna into his head, and was tracking him, and making him do violent things he didn't want to do. He was angry and agitated and said he was trying to overcome the impulses 'the feds' were forcing on him. I knew we had panic buttons, but I was concerned that the capitol police would come into the library, with guns drawn, and upset him even more.

"So, I tried to stay calm and assist him by showing him resources on our shelves, while assessing my location in relation to him and staying out of arm's reach and making sure I had an escape route. When he finally left the library, I immediately called capitol police."

What would you have done? Jane kept her cool and the story ended safely. With some planning and self-awareness and by following some tried-and-true techniques you probably learned as a child, you might dramatically reduce the chances of an uncomfortable situation escalating into a violent one.

These tips come from a presentation given by Dan Billings, director of security for the Pennsylvania Senate.

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Be Prepared

For Boy Scouts, this means ensuring you've got the supplies and know-how needed for any adventure. For legislative staffers, it means establishing a workplace violence plan in case your best efforts at deescalation fail. You'll need to know what to do next, where the emergency button is, what actions to take in various scenarios.

Being prepared also means following the safety...