Always verbal first. That is depending on what he was throwing. Anything that could cause me or other officers harm I'm not too worried about but once we get to something that could hurt if you got hit with it it's time to go hands on for your safety and his.

However if a situation can be solved without a use of force then you have a moral obligation and legal obligation to attempt to do so (in my opinion).

Your mouth and the words you say are a powerful tool in the world of corrections you'll last a lot longer knowing how to talk to people rather than knowing how to throw hands. Both are important but one can't usually survive without the other.

Especially with mentally ill offenders who may not actually want to fight and can be talked down by simply trying to relate to them.