SJRCC PRESS RELEASE October 2007 Local agency donates cars to SJRCC Criminal Justice Academy The Criminal Justice Academy at St. Johns River Community College recently received a donation of three police cars from the St. Augustine Police Department. Chief of Police Loran K. Lueders said he is glad to have the opportunity to help the academy. "We appreciate the quality training being offered by the college and want to do everything we can to support their efforts in training professional law enforcement officers," Lueders said. Scott Lancaster, SJRCC director of criminal justice training, said the academy is required by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to use police cars to train recruits in vehicle operations. The donated Ford Crown Victoria and Chevy Impalas have about 55,000 miles on them and would have otherwise been sent to auction and sold for a minimal amount. "We are very fortunate to have such tremendous support from all of our local agencies. Not only are they willing to donate cars, but all of them provide a great deal of time and effort as members of our advisory board to ensure we are providing the best possible education for our criminal justice students and community," Lancaster said. The cars will be marked to indicate that they were donated by the agency and marked with the SJRCC academy logo. Lancaster said the academy prefers at least five cars available for training on the driving range. The cars do not have to be new, but the academy prefers that the cars not have an excessive amount of miles on them to ensure safety. Without the donations, Lancaster said the academy would have to purchase the cars from dealers. Other agencies that have donated vehicles include the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, the Clay County Commission and the Clay County Sheriff's Office. The SJRCC basic recruit program provides job-related training to prepare cadets for entry-level employment as law enforcement officers. The curriculum is prescribed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission in accordance with Florida Statutes. Upon completion of the program, candidates will be eligible to take the state exam for law enforcement officers. Applications are being accepted for the February 2008 class. The program is located on the St. Augustine Campus. For more information contact the Criminal Justice Department at (904) 808-7490. PHOTO CAPTION: From left: SJRCC cadet Lewis Diamond (Putnam County), SJRCC instructor George Parsons, cadet Brandon Foster (Clay County), St. Augustine Chief of Police Loran K. Lueders, cadet James Murphy (Duval County), and cadet Michal MacDonald (St. Johns County) stand in front of two of the three police cars recently donated by the St. Augustine Police Department. The donation will help recruits receive the required training in police vehicle operations. Return to SJRCC home page.