Teen Mentor Police Academy program enjoys success in Lanett

BY JOHN BRICE

FOR THE LAFAYETTE SUN

LANETT — Local teenagers enjoyed a life-changing experience earlier this month, courtesy of the inaugural Teen Mentor Police Academy organized by the Lanett Police Department July 6 to 10. Participating youth completed mock job applications with the 911 center, underwent employment interviews and were assigned criminal investigations to pursue. 

Further activities included conducting mock traffic stops, processing crime scenes, collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses and following every step of their investigations until their case reached the courtroom. 

Capping off the experience was a courtroom exercise where the teens took the witness stand to present their investigation. They were questioned by a prosecutor, played by retired Judge Calvin Milford, and cross-examined by defense attorney Jake Key, all while appearing before Judge Terrence Brown, who presided over the proceedings.

LPD Chief Denise McCain played a key role in organizing this new youth empowerment program. 

“We went and bought the boys suits and the girls nice things to wear,” McCain said. “During the program they had to iron these clothes, not knowing these were their clothes they were going to wear. When they went to visit Point University, they went in, saw the judge and presented their case. We told them that everything they ironed, [they needed to] get it.”

McCain said the department organized this program to give teens something to do during the summer.

 “A lot of times, the kids don’t have anything to do during the summer,” she said. “Whether it be a single mom or a single dad or just absent parents sometimes, they just need something to do. The college was very impressed with them, and they asked questions about dual enrollment. It was a great step for them to know what to be doing and to look forward to it.”

Tackling the challenging issues facing the community was another topic that McCain touched on. 

“Everybody keeps complaining that the kids don’t have anything to do,” McCain said. “Especially our school resource officer, everyone comes to him and they are like, ‘This kid really needs some help and some guidance, what can we do?’ We are trying to fill that gap. We are trying to stop the cuffs from being put on the kids who are acting out. Nobody knows what is going on when they get kicked out of school because of how they are acting. No one at school knows that this kid just lost a parent or their parent got arrested.”

When asked what the department hopes to communicate through the program, McCain had a clear answer. 

“That we care,” she said. “We don’t want to put kids in jail. We don’t know what is going on behind closed doors. We want to be able to communicate with kids so they trust us to say, ‘Hey, this is what happened.’ That is why.”