What We Do...

The Lake County Police Activities League is a collaborative effort between the Lake County Sheriff's Office as well as municipal law enforcement agencies, including, but not limited to: Tavares Police Department, Mascotte Police Department, and Mt. Dora Police Department.  We provide organized sports, crafts, educational and other programs for the youth of our community.  Our goal is the development of good citizenship through positive interaction between youth and law enforcement officers.

PAL is a youth crime prevention program that utilizes educational, athletic and recreational activities to create trust and understanding between police officers and youth. It is based on the conviction that young people - if they are reached early enough - can develop strong positive attitudes towards police officers in their journey through life toward the goal of maturity and good citizenship. The PAL program brings youth under the supervision and positive influence of a law enforcement agency and expands public awareness about the role of a police officer and the reinforcement of the responsible values and attitudes instilled in young people by their parents.

Studies have shown that if a young person respects a police officer on the ball field, gym or classroom, the youth will likely come to respect the laws that police officers enforce.  Such respect is beneficial to the youth, the police officer, the neighborhood and the business community.

The History of PAL

The purpose of PAL is the same today as it was the day this crime prevention program began during the 1930’s.  PAL gives kids a chance to be respectful citizens by developing a special bond among police Officers, youth and the community.

PAL started with a bang-a rock through a window.  A youth gang in New York City, harassing storekeepers and generally making life miserable in the neighborhood, caused the problem that pioneered this approach to juvenile delinquency.   

A particular police lieutenant of the New York Police Department’s Crime Prevention Bureau liked kids.  He wondered at the uselessness of always punishing them.  He wondered whether kids might be touched before they got in trouble.  He searched out the gang’s ringleader.  They talked, and the lieutenant listened for reasons behind the kids’ antisocial behavior.  He learned of the kids frustration of the ghetto, no place to go, nothing to do and of being hassled by the police even for playing baseball in the street. The lieutenant wondered. Why to help the kids form a team?  Give them a place to play under police supervision.  Be a friend instead of an enemy.

The lieutenant found a playground where the gang could play under the eye of friendly police officers.  The team was an instant success.  Before the year ended, there where close to a dozen such teams in the city.