Officials from the Los Angeles Police Department are investigating two officers who allegedly operated a military-style boot camp for kids that employed harsh physical methods.
The Juvenile Intervention Program, which bills itself on its website as a 12-week program that will “improve the lives of "at risk" youth and their families by implementing structure, self-discipline and respect,” has been operating its weekend classes in Hollywood since at least February, according to the program’s website.
Two online videos show drill instructors screaming at young participants, disparaging them, and, in at least one instance, challenging one child to a fight. Much of the footage shows the children struggling to complete sets of push-ups and other difficult endurance exercises. In one scene, a group of exhausted-looking girls calls out, “316, sir,” as they count off another squat with their hands held behind their heads. Several kids are seen crying during the exercises or as instructors lean down into their faces to shout at them.
In one scene, a male officer pushes a girl from her knees into push-up position. In another, a young boy is brought to tears by an expletive-filled tirade.
The program and videos were first reported by the Los Angeles Daily News.
Several of the instructors are shown wearing holstered guns and uniforms from the city’s General Services police--an agency that soon will become part of the LAPD, but traditionally has been separate. The chief of the General Services force did not immediately respond to a call for comment.
LAPD officers investigated for 'military-style' boot camp
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Originally Posted by gabosaurus
