Soon, every member of the Law Magnet’s SkillsUSA chapter will showcase their skills at the leadership and criminal justice SkillsUSA District 6 competitions. Those who have trained to search a building, investigate a crime scene, or respond to a criminal justice scenario, will compete on February 15th. Meanwhile, those who have trained to convey the symbols of SkillsUSA, deliver a speech, or run for office will compete from February 20th to the 22nd. Some competitions agreed to answer a few questions on how they are preparing to do their best during competition.
Crime Scene Investigation
Crime Scene Investigation, or CSI, involves a team of four officers collecting evidence and recording information about a crime scene using photography and sketching. Practices can vary from completing worksheets on technical aspects of a crime scene to staging a crime scene and practicing the procedures for collecting evidence. Although each officer has a specialized role during the process, the team must carefully synchronize to ensure that the investigation goes smoothly. The Law Magnet’s Crime Scene Investigation teams have often succeeded at their district competitions and advanced to the state level, proving their skill in the trade.
Building Search
In building search, a team of police officers is tasked with safely entering a building and searching for their suspects. The Law Magnet boasts multiple building search teams, including a team of trainers consisting of sophomores Angel Alaniz, Ruby Alvear, Daniela Garcia, and Julian Lozano, who have been preparing for every scenario they may encounter. On how the team is preparing for the upcoming competition, Ruby Alvear explained, “We’re practicing everything we can. We’re practicing in boiler rooms and big classrooms and right now, we’re aiming to practice in the theater.” Each team must expect the most unexpected of situations, since SkillsUSA competitions are known for thrusting competitors into unpredictable conditions.
Penny Trujillo, another competitor in Building Search, believes that the most difficult part of competition is “not getting frustrated with a hard suspect and keeping your calm and not freezing, like to the point that you can’t control the suspect because you’re too scared and nervous.” Merely a single observation of a Building Search practice revealed that the team pays careful attention to handle suspects well while ensuring that each team member remains safe. The team has a strong dynamic embodying respect, constructive criticism, and trust in one another.
Felony Traffic Stop
Competitors in Felony Traffic Stop are faced with a dangerous challenge: arresting a suspect who was apprehended in a vehicle. Colloquialized as simply “felony,” this competition is one of the most well known at the Law Magnet. Although Felony Traffic Stop has both an individual and duo category, one competitor, Ulises Medina, believes that having a partner has been vital to succeeding in the competition. “It just makes you put trust in your partner and know that we’re each gonna do our part. It just relieves you of having to do two things at once,” he explained. Remaining optimistic about their practices, he says, “They’ve been going great. With my partner, we always find a way to get our suspects and try to approach the vehicle safely. And the rest of the felony group does great, too.”
Felony Traffic Stop, Building Search, and other team-based competitions in SkillsUSA are alike in that they require team members to be highly in tune with one another. Alvear claimed that the most difficult part of building search is “maintaining communication with the team, because building search relies on communication and when we don’t have good communication, that can mess up the whole search process.” Although it may sometimes prove to be difficult working in a team to apprehend a suspect, the team consistently proves to be successful in its efforts.
Prepared speech
In prepared speech, competitors articulate and deliver their thoughts on the year’s SkillsUSA theme in a five to seven minute speech. I personally compete in prepared speech, which often proves to be vulnerable and therapeutic in the way that public speaking tends to be. Each speech should feel personal to the speaker, while being relatable and powerful enough to resonate with listeners. This year’s theme, “SkillsUSA: Ignite Your Potential,” encourages prospective public speakers to explore how they realized what they were capable of, how this connects to SkillsUSA, and why others should care.
Clearly, SkillsUSA has something for everyone. Competitions range from cosmetology to welding to First Aid-CPR, as well as those referenced above. As the days during which the Law Magnet’s SkillsUSA chapter will showcase its skills approaches, competitors have been training hard to not only take home medals, but make themselves proud. On behalf of the Law Legal Pad, we wish all competitors the best of luck during their competitions!
