Fourteen Mathews youth got a crash course in law enforcement operations last week during a five-day Youth Explorers Program conducted by the Mathews County Sheriff’s Office and funded with an Operation Ceasefire Grant from the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. Sheriff April Edwards and her staff “deputized” participants during a swearing-in ceremony conducted by Mathews Clerk of Circuit Court Elizabeth Brown, then jumped right into a long list of topics, from the duties of an officer to ethics to firearm safety. There were overviews of the court system and the criminal justice system, lessons on radio communications, constitutional law, the Virginia Code, handling a crime scene, and more. Students learned how to handcuff a suspect, how to conduct a traffic stop, and how to search a vehicle. They were given a demonstration of scenarios involving K9s, and they engaged in a mock fight with “Red-Men,” or men wearing red safety suits. There were lessons on the effects of nar...