Celebrating 40th Anniversary of Explorer Program

"Celebrating 40th Anniversary of Explorer Program"
 
WHO:
Chief William J. Bratton, LAPD Explorer Class 79
WHAT:
Los Angeles Police Academy Graduation
WHEN:
Saturday, December 14, 2002
11:00 a.m.
WHERE:
Los Angeles Police Academy, Elysian Park
1880 North Academy Drive
Los Angeles

Los Angeles : The Los Angeles Police Department will be celebrating the 40th Anniversary year of the Explorer Program and the graduation ceremony for Explorer Class 79. This ceremony will take part at the historic Elysian Park Police Academy and be attended by Chief William J. Bratton.
The Los Angeles Police Department Explorer Program was established under Chief William H. Parker in 1962. During the past 40 years, explorers have assisted law enforcement with many non-hazardous duties. Some of these included search and rescue efforts, crowd and traffic control (most notably at the Los Angeles Marathon) and assisted desk officers with report writing. To date, over 740 explorers have contributed more than 75,610 hours of crime prevention and community service to the City of Los Angeles.
In the past, explorers were separated by gender. The females were known as LEEGS (Law Enforcement Explorer Girls). They would assist at basic car meetings by serving coffee, and working the front desk answering the telephone. Their uniform consisted of a skirt, white blouse and small cap. The males had a tan uniform with a five-point hat. In 1975, the female uniform was changed to a blue polyester pantsuit, and the males changed to an all blue uniform. By the early 1980’s the uniform changed to what we now see the explorers wearing; dark blue uniform pants a with a light blue uniform shirt.
The Los Angeles Police Department has witnessed prior explorers move on to achieve success by becoming members of the United States Armed Forces, Police Officers (including Chiefs of Police, Deputy Chiefs and Commanders), City Attorneys and many other fields of employment.
Come and join past, present, and future explorers in celebrating this historic event For further information, contact Angela Stewart at 818-756-7793.
This media advisory was prepared by Public Information Officer Adriana N. Sanchez, Media Relations Section, 213-485-3586.