Deputies complete advanced tracking course

White County Sheriff’s Office Tracking Team recently went to Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park to train with the Mountain Trackers Association and gain certification as Advanced Trackers.

The team, which consists of team leader Detective Bren Steward, assistant team leader Deputy Aaron Light, and Deputy Devin Moore as well as Sgt. Dallas Slatton who began his path as an assistant instructor during the training, spent the week honing their skills to recognize signs that humans leave behind. According to the team, the definition of a sign is any physical evidence of any disturbance of the environment left by animals, humans, or objects. The team worked to differentiate between signs of disturbance made by humans versus that made by animals who are native to the environment.

According to White County Sheriff Steve Page, who congratulated the team on completing the Advanced Mad Tracking Training last week, the benefits of White County deputies having the training is valuable to the residents of White County.

“The benefits of this training to our citizens can be used in numerous scenarios to include lost juveniles, adults with dementia or Alzheimer’s that have wandered off, lost hikers in one of our natural areas, or for apprehension of a fleeing felon that has taken off on foot,” Page said. “Our team is learning and building experience on a primal skill that has been around for millennia.”