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West Valley City • West Valley City detective Jerry Randall knows his beat better than most cops could ever dream.
A veteran of 20 years, Randall has spent the past 12 patrolling the halls of Granger High School.
The school is his city; he knows its pulse.
"After a while, you begin to see the same things you see on the streets," he said. "It's just like its own little city. They come there, they eat there, they socialize and sometimes that causes some friction."
But in a smaller, more controlled space, Randall has been able to develop real relationships with the school's roughly 1,600 students.
"He has a friendly but firm relationship with them," said West Valley Sgt. Mike Powell. "They know who he is."
Those relationships have allowed Randall to earn the students' trust and respect, which has helped him stay on top of problems within the school.
Recently, one of those students nominated Randall for "America's Most Wanted" All-Star competition, putting him in the same company as some of the nation's most revered first responders.
"I thought, 'What do they want me for?' " Randall said after he heard "America's Most Wanted" had called his supervisors about him.
Voters in the online competition select a new finalist each week. The overall winner will receive a $10,000 prize and a trip to theNASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star race.
Win or lose, Randall said he's just proud a student took the time to recognize his efforts. "I was very pleasantly surprised [the student] would do that," Randall said.
Randall said his presence in the halls helps deter most crime at Granger, but "you can't be in more than one place."
So he relies on his students to help take care of their "own little city."
There was the time a few years back that text messages started going around that something was about to go down. It didn't take long for Randall to hear about it.
Officers stopped the student the next day, talked to him, and found a knife in his bag.
Randall doesn't want to speculate about what could have happened. He doesn't have to, and that's the point.
Randall has been friend and mentor to many students over the years, Powell said. The detective teaches a law-enforcement class at the school and a few former students have gone on to wear the badge themselves.
He's had to arrest students, sure, but there have to be respect and caring between officer and student to help a relationship to grow, he said. Because after an arrest, "they're still going to be there at the school."
The mothers of students Randall has arrested make occasional appearances in his office to thank him and tell him their children have gone on to colleges and jobs.
"He's had an opportunity to really affect the lives of a lot of kids," Powell said.
All-Star voting
O To vote for Detective Jerry Randall, visit • http://www.amw.com/allstar/2011