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LAKE COUNTY, Fla. (FOX 35 WOFL) - As a Lake County school resource officer, Evan Rosenstein says his job is part training, part intuition. He tries to spot the not-so-obvious signs in troubled kids before things turn bad or even deadly.
“If they're acting differently I want to know why,” Rosenstein said, “if they don't look like they're making sense or just whatever they're doing just doesn't act like the norm.”
Leaders are now trying to teach that ‘sixth sense’ to all school resource officers. Officers across Lake and Sumter counties were taking part in crisis intervention training, which is now mandatory under a new state law passed after the tragedy in Parkland.
“You understand what to look for, so therefore you can work with him or her and get them the help they need before it becomes a crisis,” said Mike Smalt, a training instructor.
There will be training every day this week, and on Friday there's going to be special exercises, simulating crisis situations. The goal: prevent history from repeating itself by spotting the warning signs before the shooting has a chance to start.
“It's more learning the warning signs and hopefully avoid that kind of situation where the kid has a gun,” said Sgt. Fred Jones, from the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Officers will also get insight from patients at a local behavioral clinic and inmates at the Lake County jail.