Highland High School freshman students pair with FHPD criminal investigators on Thursday, February 15 to experience what they may come across at a real crime scene. (Roselynn Wahtomy photo)

New generation of law enforcement

By ROSELYNN WAHTOMY
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL – A trail of splattered blood surrounds a lifeless body. A bloody knife on the floor, beer cans and furniture scattered about the living room. Fort Hall Police Department and three high school students respond to the scene.
Highland High School freshman students, Terrence Appeney, Kayla Yupe and Antonia Cerino took turns walking in the shoes of criminal investigators on Thursday, February 16 at a mock crime scene.
The students are taking part in a Freshman Seminar course, which is required for graduation. The purpose of the course is to teach students how to acquire jobs by writing resumes, learning about the interviewing process, learning about various career fields and the educational backgrounds they must acquire to pursue those jobs.
Earlier that morning the students received a tour of the Justice Center, where they met officers and learned about their duties and the equipment they used.
A local FBI agent, unable to identify himself due to the nature of his job, came out to assist in the demonstration. He was glad to see the interest the youth expressed due to the Federal Bureau of Investigation needing more Native American agents.
“We need more cultural background to add collectively to us to make us stronger so we can serve better,” he said adding there are currently 110 agents who work the reservations across the nation. “It’s not enough. We need a lot more and they are our future.”
Sirens sounded in the distance as they neared the mock crime seat site in a small, vacated building behind the Wildlife Department.
One by one the students interviewed those involved individually and wrote down the details in a small notebook as they went along. The criminal investigators, Ronald Sagario, Todd Tendoy and Joseph Roberts, stood by also asking questions and giving tips to their pupils. Once they were finished they met collectively to compare stories.
In this scenario, alcohol was involved when a domestic violence situation went from bad to worse between a woman and her boyfriend. They started arguing and the woman’s daughter stepped in to defend her mother and ended up stabbing the victim.
One student used a camera to document the details of the crime scene, first walking the perimeter of the area. It was explained a video log of all photographs would accompany the process. The criminal investigators explained the procedures of preserving and collecting evidence and gave the students tips on how not to contaminate the crime scene. The students learned how to observe blood splatter patterns, in addition to noting anything out of the ordinary.
Appenay compared his job shadow experience at the crime scene to something one would see on television. But he realized it was more stressful and it involved a lot more paperwork than he thought.
Yupe said she learned many new things. Both her and Cerino said they had an interest in working in the field.
The Fort Hall Police Department has three criminal investigators.
Tendoy said he was glad to see the students show interest. He has had an interest in the career since he was a kid. His grandfather was Chief of Fish and Game and he remembers riding around with him. He started in law enforcement in 2007 with his original dream of being an Idaho State Police Officer due to their “cool” cars.
“Once I really got into it, it seemed fun and interesting. Everyday wasn’t the same,” said Tendoy. Roberts said he initially got into law enforcement to pay the bills. Fourteen years later he still loves it and also finds it fun and challenging.

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