textfiles/law/lebmay07.law

May 1990                                                          
                                                                  
                 LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPLORING
                                  
                            By

                       Steve Farish                                         
                         President
     Texas Law Enforcement Explorer Advisor's Association
                            and
                       Police Officer
             Irving, Texas, Police Department                     

                                                                  
     Two one-man police units respond to a burglary-in-progress 
call at a local church in Irving, Texas.  One unit, however, is 
noticeably different--it carries an extra passenger, a civilian. 
As the two police officers search the building for suspects, the 
civilian passenger remains with the police vehicles to watch for 
any suspicious activity.  Without warning, three male suspects 
run out of the chapel doors, across a courtyard and toward a 
parking lot.  The civilian uses the police radio to advise the 
dispatcher, as well as the other officers, of the suspects' 
descriptions and in which direction they are heading.  Because of 
this civilian's understanding of police procedures, all three 
suspects are apprehended.  The civilian rider is a Law 
Enforcement Explorer.             
                            
WHAT IS LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPLORING?                                

     Law Enforcement Exploring is a branch of the Boy Scouts of 
America (BSA), but its members are not Boy Scouts.  Rather, 
Explorers are young men and women ranging in age from 14 to 20 
who are interested in law enforcement careers.  The Exploring 
Program brings enthusiastic youths into a police department to 
participate firsthand in such activities as traffic and crowd 
control, crime prevention, security surveys and patrol ride-along 
programs.  Explorers do not take the place of regular officers, 
but rather supplement them.                                       

     The success of the Law Enforcement Explorer Program is 
apparent by its continued growth.  Nationwide, more than 1,000 
new posts have been formed during the past 10 years, and the 
number of Explorers grew from 32,000 in 1979 to almost 46,000 in 
1989.  The program has received endorsements from the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation, International Association of Chiefs of 
Police (IACP), the National Sheriff's Association (NSA), the 
Exploring Division of the Boy Scouts of America and the Law 
Enforcement Explorer Executive Committee.                         

     Regarding the Law Enforcement Exploring Program, U.S. 
Senator Phil Gramm notes, ``Involvement in the Law Enforcement 
Explorer Program establishes an awareness of the complexities of 
criminal justice and gives Scouts a better understanding of our 
democratic system.''  In essence, Exploring provides an 
opportunity for young Americans to participate in criminal 
justice activities, after training and indoctrination, designed 
to enlarge their career opportunities and build mutual 
understanding with law enforcement agencies.                 

BENEFITS OF EXPLORING
                                             
     For the Irving, Texas, Police Department, Exploring provides 
an opportunity to identify potential career law enforcement 
personnel.  Currently, the police department has three officers 
who are former Law Enforcement Explorers.  One of these officers 
has been with the department for 10 years since getting his start 
with Explorers.  ``Law Enforcement Exploring is a very positive 
influence on today's youth,'' this officer said.  ``It allows 
Explorers to learn about criminal justice through classroom 
training and practical experience.''                              

     Perhaps more important is the role an Explorer Program has 
in improving the agency's relationship with the community. 
Explorer advisors are assigned to the Community Services Section 
to deal specifically with crime prevention.  The Explorers also 
get involved in the community through senior citizen centers, 
bicycle rodeos, day schools and many other similar programs.  In 
addition, Neighborhood Watch Programs enable the Explorers to 
meet personally with residents of the community and to explain 
Operation I.D. or such crime prevention measures as the 
difference between a single cylinder and a double cylinder 
dead-bolt lock.                                                   

     Explorers enable the department to maintain effective use 
of officer manpower.  The police department uses Explorers to 
help with the filing, statistical work, and inventories.  
Explorers also participate in child fingerprinting days at a 
local shopping mall.  Involving the Explorers also allows the 
department to demonstrate the desirable practices and attitudes 
of a successful law enforcement agency, thus building respect for 
the department and improving its overall image.               

BENEFITS TO YOUTH                                                 

     For a young adult, Exploring can set a career path and 
provide a better understanding of the criminal justice system.  
It can also build character, increase mental and physical   
fitness, improve self-esteem, and provide a better understanding 
of a young person's role as a citizen.  ``With the training, 
guidance and understanding I needed as a young adult, Exploring 
helped make up my mind that law enforcement would be my career 
choice,'' said one police officer who was an Explorer for 4 
years before joining the Irving Police Department.            

STARTING A PROGRAM
                                                
     The first prerequisite for a department considering a Law 
Enforcement Exploring Post is a commitment to America's youth and 
to the BSA's goals of character building, citizenship and mental 
and physical fitness.  To receive its post charter from the BSA, 
the police department must agree to provide an Explorer advisor 
to work directly with the post members and provide a post 
committee of at least four members to function as a support team. 
The department is also responsible for providing a meeting place 
for the post, training and consultants as needed, and abiding by 
the principles and policies of the BSA in all Explorer 
activities.                                                       

     In return, the local scout council agrees to assist in 
organizing the post, train the adult leaders, offer support 
services as needed and the names of potential recruits, and 
provide liability insurance protection for the post's leaders and 
the police department.  The scout council also makes available 
literature and program materials, council-owned scout camps and 
other facilities, and district and council Exploring events, such 
as road rallies, Explorer Olympics and Law Enforcement Exploring 
conferences.                                                      

     The Irving Police Department Post was first chartered in 
October 1971.  ``I approached the Boy Scouts for more information 
on the Exploring program after reading about a post in Dallas,'' 
said the Assistant Chief of Police of the Technical Services 
Bureau, who subsequently became the Explorer advisor.  For the 
introductory meeting, called a ``first-nighter,'' 28 young people 
attended and were told that the post, by providing direct contact 
with the police department, gives Explorers an opportunity to 
learn about the law.                                     

PROFICIENCY AWARDS AND EXPLORER MOTIVATION
                        
     Once an Explorer Program is established, an ongoing 
challenge is to keep the young people's interest.  In February 
1985, advisors for the Carrollton, Texas, Police Department and 
the Irving Police Department developed an incentive awards 
program for both posts to motivate the Explorers and to recognize 
their accomplishments.  This program was also introduced and 
adopted by other police departments in the area.                  

     The Irving and Carrollton incentive program became a major 
part of the National Law Enforcement Explorer Proficiency Awards 
Program now offered by BSA to Law Enforcement Explorers.  The 
program provides an opportunity for posts and their Explorers to 
earn a series of recognition awards that incorporate their Law 
Enforcement Exploring experience, such as community service, 
crime prevention, law enforcement training, firearms training, 
emergency preparedness, and drug abuse prevention.                

     Within the Irving post, the award program motivates 
Explorers to become more involved in a ``total police work'' 
concept.  ``When Explorers join the post, their idea of police 
work is riding around in a squad car writing tickets and making 
arrests,'' according to the police department's associate 
advisor.  ``The proficiency awards help motivate the kids to 
participate in all aspects of police work.''              

EXPLORER TRAINING
                                                 
     Training consumes a tremendous amount of an Explorer's time 
and energy.  Most of the regularly scheduled meetings (first and 
third Tuesday nights of each month) are spent learning about 
different law enforcement techniques and the responsibilities of 
police work.  To become eligible for the Ride-Along Program, 
proficiency awards or local and national Law Enforcement Explorer 
competitions, each of the Explorers must complete 30 hours of 
training in areas such as departmental procedure, first-aid, 
report writing and radio procedure.                               

     Often, the department uses officers who are not Explorer 
advisors to teach the classes, which provides an opportunity for 
them to interact with the Explorers.  However, the department 
also arranges for guest speakers from Federal agencies, juvenile 
courts, detention centers or other criminal justice agencies to 
add variety to the training program.                          

TRAINING FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
                             
     The Boy Scouts of America, through the Exploring Division, 
offers a Law Enforcement Exploring Advisors' Workshop to help 
advisors become more at ease with their responsibilities and to 
understand their role in Exploring.  Each of the Irving Police 
Department's advisors has attended the 3-day workshop, which 
includes training in Explorer leadership, recruiting, policy and 
procedure, working with the BSA, community relations, money 
earning, motivation, identifying and solving problems, firearms 
safety programs, training academies and many other topics.        

     There are also area-wide workshops to help advisors run 
their posts effectively.  These workshops offer information about 
other available local, State and national programs and help to 
solve problems common to other posts through group discussions.  
All workshops are conducted by BSA personnel and Explorer 
advisors from departments around the country.                     

     In an effort to offer additional training and to create a 
positive link between the youth and patrol officers, the police  
department also offers a 3-hour Officers' Explorer Training 
class.  This class provides an overview of the Exploring Program 
and is mandatory for those who want to participate in the 
Explorer Ride-Along program.  Explorer standard operating 
procedures (SOP) are also taught to the officers to inform them 
of the Explorer's role and duties when accompanying the officer 
on patrol or when working at the station.  These restrictions 
ensure that the Explorer will be riding with officers who are 
knowledgeable about the program and who understand the guidelines 
that they, as well as the Explorers, must follow.           

CONCLUSION
                                                        
     Involvement in the Law Enforcement Exploring Program has 
greatly benefited the Irving, Texas, Police Department by 
providing needed and timely manpower for special occasions and by 
offering a positive outreach program to the community.  For the 
Explorer, the benefits continue throughout their lives.  If 
Explorers choose a law enforcement career, they usually do not 
need as extensive a training program as employees who did not 
participate in the Exploring Program.  But, even if the Explorer 
does not choose a law enforcement career, the department still 
will have helped a youth to become a much more productive citizen 
who will understand and care about the needs and concerns of law 
enforcement.