From: Mock Prison Riot Staff
Date: 1 May 2008
Command March Scheduled as Part of Mock Prison Riot Activities
Moundsville, W.Va. - The sound of hundreds of boots on the ground and various cadences once again will fill the streets of Moundsville this spring as the 12th Annual Mock Prison Riot gets under way at the former West Virginia Penitentiary.
A Command March is scheduled to begin at noon on Monday, May 12, 2008 in an effort to involve the local community in the week-long event, which is open only to sworn law enforcement and corrections, military, government, and education officials.
“The Command March was so well received at the 2007 Mock Prison Riot, that we decided to do it again in 2008,” said Steve Morrison, Vice President of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Group of the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation (WVHTCF).
The Mock Prison Riot, which is sponsored by the Office of Law Enforcement Technology (OLETC), the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Training and Technology Center (NCLETTC), and the WVHTCF, is a one-of-a-kind, premiere event which showcases new and emerging law enforcement and corrections technologies to attendees from around the world.
Staging for the one-mile Command March will begin at the South Gate area of the penitentiary at 11:30 am Monday. A Moundsville police cruiser will lead the March, with the West Virginia Division of Corrections team following first. The route that the teams will follow is similar to the route for the Moundsville Christmas parade: exit South Gate; proceed north on Jefferson to 8th; proceed west on 8th to Tomlinson; proceed north on Tomlinson to 2nd; proceed east on 2nd to Jefferson; and take Jefferson to the North Gate/North Yard of the penitentiary. This route takes the teams past three schools: Central Elementary, Moundsville Junior High School, and St. Francis Xavier and through Moundsville’s central business district.
Forty teams have registered to participate in tactical training scenarios during this year’s Mock Prison Riot. All are eligible to participate in the Command March.
“Most everyone knows that the Mock Prison Riot is not open to the general public,” said Morrison. “But that does not mean that we can’t involve the general public, and the Command March is a great way to do that. It gives the community the opportunity to see folks from all over the world who have come to Moundsville to attend this event and, by doing so, support the local economy.”
Teams carry their organizational and state flags and dress in their duty gear for the March. Some are silent, while others call out cadence. K-9 units march with their dogs, which are considered official Mock Prison Riot participants and team members just like their handlers.
“It’s quite an amazing sight to see these men and women and canines marching down our streets,” Morrison said. “It’s very moving when you think about these folks who wake up and put their lives on the line every day just by going to work.”
Store owners in Moundsville’s central business district are encouraged to fly their American and/or state flags and come outside to support the teams as they march by.
Morrison noted that the teams especially enjoy this aspect of the Mock Prison Riot. “The feedback that we received from the teams after last year’s Command March was that they were so very thankful to the residents and business owners in the community who turned out show their support. It really made them feel welcome and showed the great level of hospitality of this community. They especially loved seeing the kids out there. That really made their day.”
For more information regarding the Mock Prison Riot, please contact Cindy Barone or Sharon Goudy at 888.306.5382 or visit www.oletc.org.
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