Police Programs - Citizen's Academy
On a recent episode of CSI the investigators drew some conclusions about the suspects from the pattern of a drop of blood. I smiled at the way the episode unfolded. I don’t remember if it was CSI Miami, CSI Las Vegas or CSI New York. It could even have been NCIS. I watch them all, and if I miss one, I tape it for later. I marvel at the ease of finding the clues and I wish that we had the database they had to plug in a fingerprint, hit a button and seconds later up comes an ID photo along with employment and residence history. Cop shows have been a hit since Jack Webb, John and Ponch, Telly Savalas and Captain Kirk made Drag Net, C.H.i.P.S., Kojak and T. J. Hooker. Let’s not forget the Mod Squad and the Hardy Boys. Now we have America’s Most Wanted and numerous versions of police ride-along shows.
What do cops really do? Can they really take a print from a piece of glass and go arrest the bad guy? Why do they approach a car on a traffic stop with their hand resting on their side arm? Where are they when we see the people blowing the red light or racing down the street? What do they do anyway?
Here’s your chance to find out. Come to the Citizen’s Academy. This is an 8 week, 2 nights a week 2 hours each night opportunity to see what the St. George Police Department does and why and how we do it. Usually starting in late January of each year, there are 32 hours of fun and information, including a ride along with an officer.
We put on our best shows for you including a message from the chief of police, presentations by the drug and gang task force, weapons and SWAT demonstrations at the range, and our bomb squad “blows up” a “suspected” device. You will see and hear from our school resource officers who will tell you of some of the things that they have seen in our schools. Most people would be amazed at the things that are going on in our area. You want to see how to “beat the radar”? We have a segment on traffic enforcement and accident reconstruction. Did you know that we had over 2500 crashes last year alone? An all time high! We show you why they happen and where, along with the photos.
The Investigations Division presentations have expanded from 1 night to 2 nights to 4 nights due to popular demand. How do we investigate a crime scene or a death or a homicide? Why do we have two investigators to handle all the abuse cases and crimes against persons? Come see the pictures for yourself. How do you protect yourself against ID theft and frauds and scams? Did you know that we have a fingerprint expert that is recognized as such in court? Did you know that most of our officers are trained at the instructor level?
What about Tasers? Do we have them? How do they work? Why do we use them instead of a night stick or baton or OC spray? Are they safe? (Many people in the last few years have first hand knowledge of these answers. Most of them are still in jail and won’t be there to answer these questions, though.) By the way, if you want to volunteer for a demo, we can hook you up no charge if we can tape it.
Call the police department or email me at charding@sgcity,org for an application. We will run your name and if we find that you are a citizen with the desire to know more and get involved, we will send you an acceptance letter and a schedule. If we find that you are a burglar or a thief, thanks all the same. We don’t want to enable you. One lady called in concerned that she had been arrested at 19 for drinking. Not a problem. She was accepted with open arms. Call me if you are in doubt. We want you here. But hurry, the class closes when we have 35 participants. |
