LASD Motorsports

PALMDALE – Scott Graham, a sergeant at Lancaster Sheriff’s Station, has always had a passion for fast cars.

Since he was 4, Graham has loved cruising the open road and competing in motorsports. In 1996, Graham combined one passion with another, his job as a deputy sheriff, and created something much bigger – a program designed to reach out to today’s youth and educate them about the importance of education and the dangers of drugs, gangs, impaired driving and illegal street racing.

Graham and 22 other law enforcement personnel throughout Los Angeles County use race cars, motorcycles and off-road trucks dressed in police livery to capture the attention of youth in order to effectively communicate with them.

“I’ve always been a car guy. All my background is in the auto-motor industry until I became a deputy sheriff,” Graham said with a smile. “And I thought with all the problems that I see as a deputy sheriff, not all kids necessarily want to go into law enforcement or fire fighting, but with cars there are all kinds of jobs people can do, from driving race cars to building the body, painting them and mechanics.”

The team, also known as Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputies Motorsports, consists exclusively of Los Angeles County deputies, such as Lancaster, Palmdale, Walnut and Temple stations, as well as Santa Clarita jails and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Academy in Whittier, who participate in the program in their off-duty time.

“It is pretty big,” Graham said. “There are a lot of people that work on cars within the Sheriff’s Department. This is kind of our way of not only being proud of who we are as deputy sheriffs but also to show that we are normal people. We have passions and hobbies.”

Team members are recognized as professional racers, competing routinely at different venues.

Graham said that fact adds considerable credibility not only to the program but also to the team members themselves when they interact with the youth at school presentations, community events and car shows.

“When you talk to kids and I am in uniform and I talk as a cop, some of them are going to listen, but someone is going to go, ‘This guy is full of crap,’ ” the sergeant said. “But when we go in as race car drivers and cops, it’s a hook. It’s different. And they listen.

“Racing gives us credibility, and when we go in and talk about the cars, ‘No, they are not only show cars, but we actually race these things,’ and we are cops on top of that, it’s different.”

Deputy Loren Worthington of the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station, who has been racing since 2002 and has been part of the team since 2007, said it is another way to reach out to youth.

“It makes us more approachable. It breaks down the barrier,” hesaid.

Graham smiled while admitting it is not only young people who show an interest in the race vehicles.

“It is all ages,” he said. “You get the older people that go, ‘I remember when these cars were brand new’ to the people that go, ‘What kind of car is this old car here?’ It is all various ranges, like the cars and the trucks.”

Acknowledging that the team is a great way to deter the problem of illegal street racing, Graham said the focus of receiving a good education is just as important.

“When we go to the schools, we tell them, ‘Look, it all depends on your education what you can do. You can either be the president of the company or you can be the person cleaning the toilet. What do you want to do with your life?’ It kind of makes them think,” he said.

The team is privately funded through sponsors and paychecks only. The majority of the sponsors are Antelope Valley businesses, which are recognized with stickers on the cars, Graham said.

“We have a lot of good people in the community, they like what we do and they like the Sheriff’s Department, but they are also car guys, so they like the racing part too,” he said. “The Sheriff’s Department likes what we do and supports us in what we do, but they do not pay for any of this. We all personally own our vehicles.”

Going into his 14th year with the team, Graham said it is a lot of work, but the program has a positive impact.

“We race professional circuits with the cars and we work full time on top of it” he said. “This is just a hobby that we do. We are all family guys, too. When you try to juggle work and racing and family life, you can stay pretty busy. It is a lot of work, but it has had a positive effect over the years. Just last week I got an e-mail from a kid, telling me all about it.

“You know that it has a positive effect somewhere, but can you put a price on it? Can you get statistics? No, you never can. It is the satisfaction when you come across an e-mail and bump into someone and they tell you, ‘Hey,remember me? You came to my school.’ It makes you feel good and shows you itdoes make a difference.”

For details, send e-mail to info@lasdmotorsports.com.