Ventura County Sheriffs Department

One of the organizations that sponsors these trainings is the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The ADL is a non-profit that works to combat anti-Semitism and advocate for Israel. In this context, the ADL runs a National Counter-Terrorism Seminar that has sent hundreds of top ranking officials to Israel to learn about combatting terror since 2003. That same year the ADL established an Advanced Training School that brings delegations of Israeli law enforcement to speak to American law enforcement officials, involving over 1,000 U.S. participants since the program began.

Another organizations that organizes and sponsors these trainings is the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA). JINSA is a think tank that advocates for US-Israeli security cooperation, increased domestic military spending, and military aid to Israel, and has board members with close ties to US defense contractors. JINSA launched its Law Enforcement Exchange Program (LEEP) shortly after 9/11, and since 2002 has run annual trips to Israel for US federal, state, and local law enforcement. Over 11,000 additional American law enforcement officials have attended LEEP conferences nationwide, which bring in Israeli security officials as experts.

The Sheriff’s Department of Ventura County, California, is among the departments that have sent delegates to Israel. Geoff Dean served as Sheriff of Ventura County between 2010 and 2018. Bob Brooks served as Sheriff of Ventura County between 1998 and 2011. In 2013, Sheriff Dean attended a training in Israel with the ADL as a delegate of the Western States Counter-Terrorism Seminar, modeled after the National Counter-Terrorism Seminar. Sheriff Brooks attended a training in Israel with JINSA as a delegate LEEP program.