PEARL, MS (Mississippi News Now) -
About 100 law enforcement officers from around Mississippi are in training at the Law Enforcement Officers Training Academy at Pearl. They are undergoing 32 hours of civil disorder/peaceful demonstration/crowd management, and other types of training.
It came about because of what happened in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 2005.
There was a complete break down of authority because agencies could not communicate with one another. Their personnel were scattered, with no way to call in to headquarters, which in some cases, no longer existed.
The program is under the direction of J. W. Ledbetter, who is the Mississippi Homeland Security Executive Director.
Twenty-seven counties are represented in the training, which costs about $1,000 per student, and they have $1,000 worth of gear.
They will be expected to go back to their units and train others.
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