“Growing the leaders of tomorrow today”

Joppa Training Group (JTG) is just that, a group of world-class instructors with decades of real-world experience from all over the United States who consistently bring exceptional professional development and leadership training to the law enforcement and first responder communities.

JTG’s goal is to provide enjoyable and memorable world-class training specifically designed to help you and members of your organization be better. We’ve all seen and attended courses where students were no better the week after training than they were the week before. Our goal is to provide training where students are glad they attended and are actually better the week after than the week before.

Our mission is to enhance professionalism, boost competence, increase a greater understanding earlier in careers, inspire confidence, reduce grievances, reduce personnel complaints, reduce lawsuits, reduce stress, increase morale, increase individual & organizational wellness, and develop an increased commitment to the profession.

We strongly believe that it's never too early or too late to get better.

Our instructors have “been there, done that,” and truly understand the issues of today. Let their decades of experience help you and your team be better and enjoy the fulfilling career & personal life we all want.

Who we are.

John and Shanda Turner are the founders of Joppa Training Group which was created for the sole purpose of helping others.

John A. Turner, Esq.

Retired Sheriff John Turner is co-founder and CEO of Joppa Training Group. John is also currently the In-House Counsel and Training Manager for the Los Angeles Police Protective League. John began his law enforcement career in 1984 and has served as an LAPD officer, a police attorney, a counter-terrorism investigator embedded with US Army combat units in Iraq, the two-term elected Sheriff of Walla Walla County WA, and as a senior law enforcement consultant for the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards & Training (CA POST).  Sheriff Turner has also served as a Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WA CJTC) commissioner, an executive board member of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), and is currently a board member of POALAC – the Peace Officers Association of Los Angeles County.

John earned his Juris Doctorate law degree from Southwestern University, a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, a USC DCI graduate certificate, and a Force Science Institute certification. Sheriff Turner is an FBI/CJTC Command College graduate and an FBI-LEEDA Trilogy Award recipient. He holds an Executive Professional Certificate from WA CJTC. In 2013, Sheriff Turner was nominated by his peers across Washington State for the National Sheriff’s Association (NSA) Sheriff of the Year award and received that year’s NSA Medal of Merit award for outstanding leadership and positive accomplishments to the law enforcement profession. Since 2018, John has also been an FBI-LEEDA instructor teaching Supervisory Leadership, Command Leadership, Executive Leadership, and Internal Affairs/Critical Incident Protocol courses for agencies across the United States.

Shanda J. Turner

Shanda Turner is co-founder and Chief Operations Officer of Joppa Training Group. Shanda began her public service career in 1985 as a school district fiscal clerk, rising to the level of Business Manager. She retired in 2018 at the rank of Chief Civil Deputy for a Sheriff’s Office in the Pacific Northwest. Shanda is a motivated and creative program and project manager who has led numerous teams to be efficient, effective, and engaged. Her diverse background includes decades of successful financial, human resource, and risk management in both the public and private sectors. She is passionate about turning teams into high-functioning performers with an emphasis on growing individuals to enhance the team.

Shanda is also the founder, owner, and operator of Wild Cowgirl Horsemanship. Built from a life-long passion for horses, Shanda specializes in creating successful partnerships between riders and their horses from pleasure trail riding to world class competitions.

Cory D. Leeper

Cory Leeper is the Director of Training for Joppa Training group. He retired as a 30-year law enforcement veteran with the La Verne Police Department CA where he grew up and attended local schools. Cory has held different assignments, including Patrol, Field Training Officer, Range Instructor, Detective, SWAT (FSET) Team Operator, and Narcotics Task Force Detective with LASD Major Narcotics.

As a Sergeant he supervised Training, Range, and the Reserve Program in the Patrol Division. Cory was a founding member in establishing and building the Department’s first Special Events Team, Homeless Outreach Team, and Wellness Team. In 2020, Cory took on the role of Detective Bureau Sergeant, and in January 2022 he was promoted to Lieutenant, eventually becoming the Support Services Commander. Lt. Leeper was the Regional Foothill Special Enforcement Team SWAT commander, the Detective Bureau Commander, and previously supervised the Communications Bureau, Records Bureau, and Community Services. When assigned as the mutual aid coordinator for LA County Area D, he formed a regional unified response training group. Cory recently partnered with the LA County District Attorney’s Office to develop policies and procedures for law enforcement’s use of Artificial Intelligence and has developed the first formal AI report writing training program in Los Angeles Country. Dedicated to advancing his skills and knowledge, Cory recently graduated from the California Association of Tactical Officers (CATO) 18-month Strategic Leadership Program in October 2024. In addition, he is pursuing his bachelor’s degree at Claremont Lincoln University in Organizational Leadership.

Cory teaches the AI Report Writing for Law Enforcement course.