CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Kenwood High School hosted a criminal justice competition to showcase the skills of criminal justice students from Montgomery and surrounding counties on March 23, 2016.
Students representing West Creek High School, Northwest High School, Stewart County High School and Kenwood High School were in attendance for the day long event. The competition was the brain child of Kenwood High School Criminal Justice teacher Amy Shoopman.
Students participated in four events to showcase the knowledge and skills they have learned in class and through involvement with the Criminal Justice Clubs. One event was a traffic stop scenario, where students will be judged on their ability to conduct a proper traffic stop.
Another was a mock crime scene where students investigated and processed the crime scene. The students had to determine what constituted a legal search and how to properly collect evidence from the crime scene.
The third event was a 10 table forensic science event that focused on different aspects of criminal investigation. Students were judged on crime scene sketching, lifting fingerprints, anthropology, ridge characteristics of fingerprints, and collection of evidence, observation, and trivia questions.
Finally, students competed in a debate focusing on a contemporary issue dealing with criminal justice. The students had to come up with arguments for both sides before the event started.
“The competition was good. I’m glad we competed against the teams we competed against. This was a learning experience and I believe this will help prepare us for careers in Criminal Justice,” said Susan McCaskill, Kenwood High School freshman.
Members of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Clarksville Police Department, Kenwood High School Broadcasting Teacher and Speech/Debate Coach Amy Jackson, and Daymar Institutes Criminal Justice Program all assisted in the execution of the event.