PRESS RELEASE
Lake County, [06/22/2023]
Clerk Faith Andrews, a public servant who is passionate about supporting our men and women in uniform, has provided $300,000 of Certificate of Title Surplus funds for Phase 2 of the Lake County Gun Range Project. The decision comes after Clerk Andrews recently toured the site where Phase 1 of this new state-of-the-art law enforcement training facility is nearing completion.
During her visit, Clerk Andrews observed the progress being made in constructing the new facility as well as the plans for Phase 2. This facility will provide a secure and safe environment for officers to enhance their decision-making skills, undergo comprehensive training, and prepare for critical incidents before they occur. Furthermore, the facility will foster collaboration among law enforcement agencies across the county, which promotes enhanced coordination and teamwork.
Sheriff Leonbruno noted that the days of police training by shooting at paper targets and then going to work in the field are no longer acceptable. Today’s training must integrate every aspect of policing such as driving, defensive hand-to-hand tactics, verbal confrontations, and the ability to de-escalate, or escalate if necessary, the encounter. This training requires specialized expertise to effectively and safely simulate real world scenarios. In such training environments officers must make critical decisions while evaluating any number of conditions and physical requirements. Accomplishing this training in a safe and secure environment enables officers to learn, improve decision making, and prepare for critical incidents before they occur.
The new training complex will still have the traditional live fire range. However, two training buildings are being added. The training center will provide access to classrooms for weapons training, legal updates, defensive tactics, and training via zoom from across the United States. Further, it will have a decision-making shooting simulator which puts the officer into a multitude of real-life scenarios to learn responses in a safe environment before they confront them in the field.
The second building is a simulation environment in a moveable wall building. Officers will be training on encounters with armed suspects, engaging in felony traffic stops, and officer/civilian down rescue scenarios. The limits of room configuration are endless which will be extremely beneficial and vital when searching areas that are foreign and not predictable. This building will be extremely beneficial to every law enforcement agency in Lake County. Not only will this building give each officer the stresses needed to train properly, it will allow police departments to train together and develop skills in uniformity, which are essential when responding to mutual aid calls and working together in stressful situations.
Clerk Andrews was instrumental in helping to make the COPS Grant a reality, which provides additional Sheriff deputies in the townships of Concord, Painesville, and Perry. These additional patrols are making a huge difference in these communities. Clerk Andrews recognizes the dedication and sacrifice law enforcement officers makes in serving and protecting our communities. With this significant investment, which essentially will complete the Gun Range Project, Clerk Andrews continues her unwavering support for the brave men and women in uniform.