Hostage holding has been utilized as an instrument of politics and commerce since the beginning of recorded history. For those events that took place in public view a familiar official response was to meet force with force. Social unrest in various parts of the world during the 1960s and 1970s sometimes resulted in an assortment of domestic and international terrorist events. Time and again, hostages were held. Although official response was often predicated on a swift resolution through the application of necessary force, authorities were frequently thrust into the reluctant role of negotiator. Police Hostage Negotiation (HN) in the US began as an innovative NYPD practice more than 30 years ago largely as a result of the 1972 terrorist attack at the Munich Olympics. The vast majority of incidents were concluded without loss of life. Included in these numbers are responses to airplane hijacking events in conjunction with the Police Department of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and with the FBI. In the ensuing years HN practices were adapted and adopted by the majority of US police agencies. The 9-11 attacks prompted some to question the future value of HN as a police tactic. This essay discusses the issues and suggests that HN should continue as a tool in the arsenal for responding to hostage holding events.