In many ways, the mission of the Los Angeles Police Department parallels that of the Marine Corps in Afghanistan: to rid communities of criminals who cause havoc and unrest for the law-abiding citizens.
U.S. Marine Corps 1st Lt. Andrew Abbott, an Embedded Training Team company mentor, listens intently to a Los Angeles police officer in early July. Members of the Camp Pendleton based 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment conducted a series of ride-alongs with the Los Angeles Police Department Southwest Division to prepare for the troops' upcoming deployment to Afghanistan.
Members of the Camp Pendleton-based 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment's Police Mentoring Team and Embedded Training Teams recently conducted a series of ride-alongs with police officers of the LAPD in preparation for the troops' upcoming deployment to Afghanistan.
In many ways, the Marine Corps' mission of counterinsurgency mirrors the many missions of our nation's law enforcement. Instead of kicking in doors and relying solely on combat tactics, these Marines will be tasked with winning the trust of the local population and ensuring Afghan security forces will be able to defend their country, even after the United States forces have left.
During the training, the LAPD officers taught Marines police tactics, such as how to defuse tense situations with civilians while comparing and contrasting police methods for clearing buildings. These tactics varied in many ways from the military tactics that the Marines are accustomed to.
U.S. Marine Corps 1st Lt. Shane Farrar, the embedded training teams company mentor, said the ride-along gave the Marines a new way to look at things.
"We will be working alongside our Afghan counterparts as they police their own villages, and the LAPD gave us a firsthand experience of what to expect," said Farrar, a 24-year old Charlestown, R.I., native.
In Afghanistan, the Marines of the police mentoring team and the embedded training teams will work side by side with Afghan National Police and the Afghan National Army, training them to take charge of their country and fight Taliban terrorism in many areas of the war-torn country.
Training members of the Afghan police and army, and gaining the trust of the local population, will be no easy task, said Sgt. Mike Goosby of the LAPD Southwest Division.
"The real test will be when their boots are on the ground," Goosby said. "They will have a harder time than the LAPD due to the lack of resources in Afghanistan, so they can't go in with a mindset of things changing right away. The Marines need to take themselves out of the situation, and look at it from the outside in to really understand what's going on."
Goosby said there will be challenges adapting to police work.
"I think there will obstacles. One will be retraining the Marines' way of thinking," he said. "They can't go into the situation with guns blazing and expect to win the trust of the people. You have to build that trust with the village elders and follow through with your commitments."
Goosby said the efforts of the Taliban to disrupt the peace and terrorize the local population will be a problem the Marines will have to overcome.
"With all of the good work that you do, you will have another group doing bad and blaming it on you," said the L.A., native, referring to the insurgent groups in Afghanistan.
Farrar said spending a day in the shoes of real police officers will be helpful to the Marines' mission in Afghanistan.
"The most beneficial part of the ride along was actually being out on patrol and seeing how the police interacted with the civilians in the community," Farrar said.
