Ministry and Moot Court
On the surface, one would not think ministry and moot court (a mock trial held at law school and police academies) have much in common or that the lessons learned from both could guide the next generation of law enforcement officers. However, blending the lessons learned from both a long legal career and work with a Christian women’s outreach, legal instructor Jenny Reed instills the importance of compassion, kindness, common sense and the need to treat everyone as human beings into the hearts and minds of each Department of Criminal Justice Training recruit she teaches.
Despite her talent for teaching legal topics, Reed’s initial plans did not include the courts of law. Rather, a very different kind of classroom was in her sights—she wanted to be a history teacher. However, after one year at Asbury College, Reed transferred to the University of Kentucky to pursue a degree in political science.
After considering politics as a life path and completing an internship in Washington D. C., Reed decided that life wasn’t for her and chose to advance her education through law school.
“I was shy, and I didn’t like speaking in front of people,” Reed said. “But I loved history, and I loved the constitutional law class I had taken. I was also still interested in government and how laws were passed.”
In 1998, she graduated UK with a Juris doctorate and began chasing a career in criminal law, specifically in prosecution.
With few legal jobs available in her hometown of Nicholasville, Reed went to work for a civil law firm in Ashland, KY. There she was able to cut her legal teeth on employment law, workers compensation and insurance defense. But as it often does, home was calling. When an opening became available, Jenny returned to a Nicholasville law firm where she stayed for a year before joining the Fayette County Attorney’s Office as an assistant county attorney.
“I was happy to finally be able to do what I wanted to do,” said Reed, adding she transitioned for a short time to the Jessamine County Attorney’s Office before returning to Fayette. “ It was difficult seeing people I grew up with as defendants and victims. I needed to be in a situation where I was more emotionally detached.”
During her time at the county attorney’s office, Reed was able to dig into a variety of cases, including general misdemeanor prosecution, felony preliminary hearings, juvenile prosecution and more. Additionally, for three years, she was able to work with and volunteer at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District as a special assistant attorney to obtain federal experience.
Legal Instructor Jenny Reed leads a class. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
However, after 15 years at the county attorney’s office, Reed noticed her attitude towards people changed, and not in the way she would have wanted.
“I had a cynical look at things,” said Reed. “I didn’t want to bring that home to my kids. I did not want my attitude to affect them. I was seeing people at their worst, whether it be the victim or defendant. I tried to do more things with my church. I tried to be in situations where I saw people in better circumstances and realized that not all people treat other people or act the way they do when they are facing criminal charges or are the victim of criminal charges. I tried to get out of that mindset.”
While trying to be more involved in positivity, Reed was introduced by a Lexington police officer to a women’s ministry called Natalie’s Sisters.
Founded by Jani Lewis, and originating out of Southland Christian Church, the ministry began with a few ladies delivering meals to women who worked at adult entertainment clubs, Reed said. Not only were the women offered food, but also they were gifted encouragement, unconditional love and a means to get out of that lifestyle if they were ready to do so. According to Reed, one of the women the ministry workers befriended became a murder victim. She had left the clubs and had become involved in street-level prostitution. The ministry reached out to police (several of the Natalie’s Sisters volunteers were married to officers) and started doing ride-alongs. During these rides, officers would show them more women who were in need of help and resources, love, food and acceptance. Thus, Natalie’s Sisters further developed into a partnership with LPD.
Reed became connected to the founder as she sought knowledge of what these women were going through in the legal system. Further, Reed ended up working cases for people who could benefit from Natalie’s Sisters’ services. In 2015, Reed felt called to be more involved but considered her career as a prosecutor a conflict of interest. So she left her job at the county attorney’s office and began working for the ministry as legal counsel, assisting as they became a 501c3, ministering in the jails and so much more.
During this time, a friend began working as a contract attorney assisting with moot court at DOCJT. In 2016, Reed was able to fulfill a longtime desire of working with the department by participating in moot court as well. In 2017, Reed was hired onto the agency fulltime. Despite, leaving her position at Natalie’s sisters, she remains on the board.
Legal Instructor Jenny Reed hopes she can send recruits out into their careers with the tools needed to help them be happy and successful. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
At DOCJT, Reed teaches a variety of basic and in-service legal courses, such as human trafficking, search and seizure, laws of arrest, legal update and reviews.
Reed said her courses are run in a relaxed yet respectful manner. Students should be prepared to answer what their favorite movie is as an icebreaker.
“I do that because law is so different,” she explained. “They didn’t sign up for law school, I understand that, but they did sign up for law enforcement. Law is key in that equation. As lawyers we have three years of law school. But (recruits) have to learn a lot of what we do in less than 20 weeks because we don’t have them every day during that time. So I want them to know that I’m approachable and that they can ask me questions.”
With Reed’s past including various legal work and time in the ministry, there are several principles that cross over into law enforcement, which she imparts to each recruit. One such lesson involves working human trafficking cases.
“It doesn’t always look like you think it will look. When you arrest someone for prostitution, you need to dig deeper,” she said, noting that some past students have inquired about how Natalie’s Sisters is set up and works with law enforcement.
Additionally, Reed urges recruits to seek a personal life outside their career to help keep a positive attitude even when the job is getting them down.
“Remember that you aren’t seeing people at their best, and you’re not seeing the best of society—not everybody is like (those you see when working cases),” said Reed. “However, treat everybody as humans. When you start talking about people being worthless, you don’t know how they got that way. And I used to do that too. It’s a coping mechanism. If you take the humanity out of it, it’s easier to go forward and deal with some of the things that you see. I totally get that. But on the other hand we can’t lose sight of why we are called to be part of law enforcement, to protect and serve everyone.”
Reed says she hopes recruits takeaway the importance of doing the right thing, even if it isn’t popular and to never be afraid to ask for help when they need it.
