Book 'em, kiddo Youths learn policework through Explorers; head

A group of nine area teenagers will travel to Arizona on Sunday to put their knowledge of criminal justice to the test at the 2002 National Law Enforcement Exploring Conference at Northwestern Arizona University.

The group, which is part of the Cape Girardeau Boy Scout Co-ed Explorer Law Enforcement Post 4230, will participate in team and individual events ranging from a shooting competition to a crime scene search to a hostage negotiation.

The Cape Girardeau Explorers Post was created in 2000 under the direction of dispatcher Rachael Larsen for students ages 14 to 21 who are interested in the criminal justice field.

It gives high school and college students an inside look at policing, allowing them to decide if that's a career path they would like to follow.

For the past three years they have met once a week for two hours to listen to lectures from police officers from different divisions of the department and take part in hands-on activities.

The experience already paid off for two of the members who were recruited for security positions at Target. Justin Kemp, 19, and Casey Dodd, 19, are both criminal justice majors at Southeast Missouri State University.

"This is just something I've wanted to do since I was a kid," said Dodd. "Up at the university we just read about the stuff, here we go through it and gain a lot more knowledge hands-on."

Practice session

On July 1, five of the Explorers making the trip to Arizona met at the department to learn about crime scene investigations.

Joseph Tado, lead crime scene investigator at the Cape Girardeau Police Department, took the students through a mock investigation.

He showed the students how to make a cast of a shoe imprint made in the mud outside the office, how to document the scene, how to collect large pieces of evidence like a knife or gloves and how to collect trace evidence like pieces of hair, skin and blood.

On Friday, the whole team of nine students and three advisers met for a last-minute review of all aspects of criminal justice.

The students will compete on teams and in individual events if they wish.

Each team will be randomly selected to take part in two of 10 areas, including arrest and search techniques, bomb threat response, traffic accident investigation and white collar crime.

Individuals can compete in any of eight areas, including police physical performance test, sample written test, bike policing or the pistol competition.

The national competition is held once every two years and does not require participants to compete at the state level first.

Larsen said the Cape Girardeau Explorers didn't take part in the competition two years ago because it was the group's inaugural year, and they wouldn't have been ready.

"You have to know how to do everything," she said. "We've been practicing for three years now so we should be ready."

Longtime interest

Jessica Watters, 16, of Cape Girardeau, has only been on the team for a year. She said she wanted to join because she's always been interested in forensics.

"My grandfather always used to watch the Discovery Channel," she said. "I thought this would be fun."

Watters said even though she doesn't know if she will study criminal justice in college -- she might try writing, or maybe cooking -- she's had fun being in the Explorers.

She said the most fun she has had so far was when they got to practice serving warrants on police officers.

"We came in the room, yelled 'Get down!' and put the handcuffs on them," she said smiling. "The officer I had said, 'She's trying to break my arm,' when I pulled his arm back."

Yearly dues for the Explorers is $7. The cost of the trip to Arizona is $325 per person.

Larsen said the group tried to raise money through selling candy, popcorn and a car wash, but was only able to raise enough money to pay $50 for each person.

The Cape Girardeau Police Department donated uniform pants for the group, and the Cape Girardeau Police Officers Association donated the shirts.

The group will return from Arizona July 14.

hkronmueller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128

Want to join?

If you are between the ages of 14 and 21 and would like to learn more about criminal justice and policing, contact Rachael Larsen at the Cape Girardeau Police Department at 335-6621, extension 2. Annual dues are $7.