Overview

From patrol to detectives, every police officer conducts investigations -- but are they all playing from the same sheet of music? Even in the best police cultures, there is often a lack of an organized plan for all investigators to follow. This course addresses that issue. We have developed an Investigation Blueprint Training method for patrol officers (first investigators) and detectives. It is simple enough for a rookie officer to solve a car burglary but thorough enough to be useful even for seasoned detectives assigned to the most complex investigations. In addition to a method, we teach a mindset for great investigators (and great law enforcement careers). Students practice this mindset in the class, including self- assessment, and leave with a better understanding of their strengths and areas for improvement. This is not a lecture-dominated “Death by PowerPoint” class. Participants will engage in whole-class discussions, individual assignments, breakout sessions, video analyses, case studies, and small group projects and presentations. Like our investigative approach, the class stresses individual accountability and group collaboration. Instructors Will Manion and Matt Irvine are retired detectives with a half-century of investigative experience between them in homicide, sex assault, fraud, narcotics, public corruption, and other crimes. Both instructors have worked on federal task forces and have been honored with awards, including Investigator of the Year (for a murder investigation) and Sexual Assault Investigator of the Year. Both are experienced police trainers, having taught at academies and agencies in California, Oregon, Washington, and Utah.