CERTIFIED

With Ron Sloan, Director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (keynote speaker)





Pinning on of the badge by my wife

Very pleased to announce that the Denver Metro area is a safer place now that there are thirty four new deputy sheriffs and police officers. Every one of us passed our final POST exam. Graduation was a blast and it feels great to have finally made it.

I really enjoyed myself in the academy; this has been one of the greatest experiences I have had in my life. I am glad to be finished and feel ready to take on the next stage - Field Training (FTI).

As our friends from our neighboring departments move on, us Jeffco Deputies will remain for a three week detentions academy. This is preceded by a week of observation training in the jail. After this we will begin FTI and thus our careers.

I am grateful for the opportunity I have had over the past 20 weeks to share my experiences with you. I hope I have given you an insight into what it takes to become a law enforcement officer, it’s a crazy ride with a lot of challenges, and my head should stop hurting by Christmas!

If you are trying to get into the academy for the next class, do not give up, no matter how hard it may be it is all worth it when you reach this stage.

I would like to thank Deputy Johnson, Deputy Hoffman and Lieutenant Wygant for seeing us through this whole experience. You never gave up on us and gave us a 100% all the time. Thank you to all our instructors, so much effort was put into all aspects of our training, I really appreciate everything.

Drunks, taser and court

It has been a while since my last blog, and for that I apologize. The last couple of weeks have been very busy! We had our final test last Wednesday, and POST exam today! I did well in my last exam scoring a 92%, and as I write this I am waiting to find out the results of the POST test, fingers crossed! I actually feel good about the test, if I missed 30% and get a fail it is because I fell asleep half way through!

This is the last day of Academy, five months ago, this day was so far away, and now we are here. I am so excited. Tomorrow I will be a certified Peace Officer in the State of Colorado. It feels really good.

I want to tell you about some of the stuff we have been doing this last week or two, as I haven’t had the chance to do so yet.

Firstly our DUI wet bar was a lot fun. Getting drunken people to do roadside tests was very educational. We had practiced these techniques in the classroom on each other and had learnt what signs to look for that would indicate intoxication, with out the use of a breathalyzer. This was all well and good but didn’t really make sense until we performed these exams on the intoxicated.

Taser was a kick in the butt! You can take that as a literal statement. Getting fifty thousand volts of electricity running through your body is an experience you don’t forget too easily. We got some great video footage of the event, some of which is not family suitable as you can imagine.

Mock crime scenes, probably one of my favorite exercises of the academy; it incorporated everything we had learnt thus far into one simulation using actors and props. We were divided into groups and dispatched to our scene. The whole scenario was played out from start to finish; we could utilize our arrest control techniques, weapons if we had to, and then eventually process the crime scene, interview suspects and write our reports.

From dispatch to clearing the scene took about four hours. The report writing for the scenario took another five hours. A week later we had to go to the Jefferson County court house where real DA’s played judges and defense attorneys, we took the stand and they ripped us apart, well they ripped my class mates apart, I didn’t get called up. It was really cool to see the whole justice system in action from start to finish.

DUI testing photos

T-minus 12 days!

12 academy days left and its graduation time! We are so close I can taste it. I can’t believe we are here already. It seemed like only yesterday we were in business attire. The past 18 weeks have flown by.

We are completely finished with the skills side of our training, last Thursday was our final testing for arrest control. We do still, however, have a couple of hurdles ahead of us before we got that badge pinned on our chest. We have one more PT assessment, a five second taser ride (voluntary), and the Lookout Mountain run. Besides that it’s all downhill from here.

Crime scene investigation is the topic for this week. We have 24 hours of everything from crime scene preservation and documentation to finger printing and photography. It is really a lot of fun, and I’m learning a great deal. Investigations are something I would really enjoy doing later on in my career. The whole process fascinates me, the investigators we have here at the Sheriff’s office are very talented and I enjoy studying previous cases that they bring into our lectures for us.

Thursday and Friday is DUI class. From what I understand we have some live subjects come into class, they get drunk and we get to deal with them. I hear it is a very interesting couple of days. I will let you know all about it, and just in case you were wondering all the positions for drunks are filled so save yourself the time of filling out an application!

Qualifying Lap

We are now wrapped up with driving. It was a great week. I feel I learned so much in the five days we were at the track. We took the POST (Peace Officer Standards of Training) exam on Friday which consisted of a written test and a driving exam.

The driving test was a timed course around the track; we had to get one lap in within 4:10 order to pass. Sounds easy right, just hang on and drive fast; well it wasn’t that straight forward. Along the track five separate courses were set up for us to drive through. We had the reverse serpentine, shuffle steer, and lane change to name but a few.

If you hit a cone at any stage you have to get out of the car and fix it, doing this will cost you about ten to fifteen seconds, if you hit more than one cone the chances are you will not qualify in time. Also, you cannot drive off of the track or roll over the center divide at anytime, any violation is an automatic disqualifier.

The good news is we got lots of practice and excellent training, I am happy to say that I completed the course in 3:36, not the fastest time but top three of my group. I was talking to one of my class mates about the training that we have received here at the Academy. From the driving to the firearms instruction and everything in between, it would cost us thousands to do this privately! It truly is an honor to go through the Academy. If you are trying to get here or have been offered a place here, then give it everything you have as there are a hundred people who want to take your place.

Driving

Driving is awesome. I’ve heard plenty of people say that this is the most fun you have in the Academy; I’m beginning to see why. We are learning so much and we have only been driving for two days.

High speed braking at 60 mph is probably my favorite right now, that and the reverse serpentine. The reverse serpentine is either done on a straight course or on a “snake” track. Cones are set up about every thirty to forty feet and we have to reverse around them without knocking any of them over.

We start off slow and eventually have to pick up speed. The idea behind this and a lot of what we have done so far is to get us used to not only the dimensions of the car but also its limits. The reverse serpentine for example, if you get going fast and push the vehicle you will spin out, which is not only fun but very educational!

Our instructors are very laid back and really promote an atmosphere for learning. Friday we test for driving, and Thursday night we have high speed, pursuit driving. The pursuit driving we get to chase an instructor around the track at night with lights and sirens.

RAID

We started off this week with RAID (Rapid And Immediate Deployment). An excellent class involving simulated weapons and an abandoned office building.

A simulated weapon is basically an auto pistol which operates exactly like a regular pistol. The only difference is that instead of firing a live round a paintball is ejected from the barrel causing a mark on your intended target.

RAID training is basically similar to building searches which I mentioned earlier in one of my blogs except for the fact that this is a response to an active shooter situation. We had a lot of fun, what a great way to start the week not to mention a Monday morning!

As an avid paintball player I was in my element here, which is probably why I offered to play the bad guy. I was glad I did, I got to shoot a lot, and didn’t have to wait my turn to play. Great training tool, well executed scenarios.

Building Search

On Monday some members from the JCSO Regional SWAT team came in taught us the principles of building searches. We met at a local office building that has been rented for our training purposes and our instruction began.

We started with basic tactical movement, clearing rooms, clearing rooms as a team and eventually looking for a suspect. As you can imagine our instructors are highly trained operatives and have an abundance of knowledge and skill to pass on to us.

This was a great class and a very important skill for Law Enforcements officers to possess. Especially in the first few years of our careers we will be working the graveyard shifts and will be dispatched to many burglar alarms requiring us to perform a search.

I think I understand the basic elements of clearing rooms and moving through corridors. My classmates and I take this very seriously during our training which creates a certain sense of realism. I felt my adrenaline kick up as we searched from room to room looking for a suspect (played by a recruit) and when I found him in the dark corner of one of the rooms it really spiked.

Training

So we had an accident in Arrest Control. During one of our ground defense drills one of my fellow recruits was hurt, and I’m sorry to say it was me that hurt him.

Please understand that all our training is done in a safe and professional manner, and that all steps are taken to avoid such injuries; however, with that said we also try and make our drills as realistic as possible so that if were attacked on the street or in the jail we are fully prepared for it and not shocked by the initial confrontation.

During this particular drill I was on top of one of my classmates, his objective was to knock me off and get to his feet. It was a ten minute drill and we were in the last minute or two of it when we both landed funny and he heard a snap. It was his collar bone. Needless to say we took him to the hospital and got him taken care of.

He will not fully heal for about four weeks or so, but the good news is he will be able to complete the academy. (I would feel terrible if he could not go on any further.)

I wanted to talk about this so that people understand what were training for here. We are going into a very dangerous field of work and our training reflects that. Unfortunately accidents happen and sometimes cannot be avoided, the question we have to ask ourselves is what if my collar bone broke, and I was on the street getting attacked, can I fight through the pain and win? The answer is clear for us, we have no choice, and we have to win regardless of what happens.

Firearms & Fighting

Today Team B started off with firearms in the morning and arrest control in the afternoon.

We are approaching the half way point in our firearms training and are learning some really cool stuff. We had a night shoot two nights ago which was awesome, manipulating a flashlight and shooting at the same time is a whole new experience for me but it was a lot of fun.

Today we ran through our POST course at the range. This is a timed drill taken a number of different shots from various positions and incorporating reloads and weapons malfunctions. We also got into some tactical drills shooting steel targets, suspect identity and two man shooting drills which were a blast!

After lunch we started our Arrest Control class. We reviewed our holds and takedowns along with handcuffing techniques and then moved on to the basic elements of ground defense; break falls and body weight techniques. Class was great and a lot of fun, not to mention a great work out! Rolling around on the floor trying to kick each other was probably the most interesting, not to mention tiring. One minute fighting on the floor can really take it out of you, certainly proved to me how much better in shape I need to get. It is important to learn how to defend ourselves from the ground as a lot of people anymore train in mix martial arts and the styles associated with UFC style tournaments.

OC Spray

Time is moving fast now. We have passed the half way point, ten weeks to go! Now half way, that’s got to be celebrated, and how better to that, than with a little OC spray (pepper spray)!

Friday was an excellent day. We started out with PT, an hour and a half of PT! It was a great work out. Sprinting up and down hills, pushups, lunges they threw it all at us. We really get to see a lot of Golden on our runs and Deputies Johnson and Hoffmann really try and mix it up for us so boredom doesn't set in. They seem pleased with our performance and attitude during PT.

We then had a two hour lecture on alternatives to deadly force. Here we talked about tools like OC spray, taser and other less lethal weapons that we have available to us as Law Enforcement. Quite appropriate really as after lunch we were going to feel the effects of OC personally.

Now I do have to disclaim that being sprayed with OC was not compulsory. And if you believe that, neither is getting shot with the Taser! We assembled in the HQ car wash and given our objectives.

Basically this is what we had to do; get sprayed, move to "Bob" a martial arts dummy and strike him for thirty seconds while giving him verbal direction. During this time I could feel my eyes starting to burn and adrenaline kick up.

Stage two; move around the corner of the car wash and arrest a suspect at gun point. Of course we used training weapons and the suspect was one of my class mates. By this stage my eyes were really burning and I could feel my lungs fighting for oxygen, the adrenaline was still strong so I wasn't feeling the full of effects of the OC just yet!

Stage three; Deputy Hoffmann handed me a simunitions weapon and the stage was set for a shoot/don’t shoot scenario. Another one of my class mates played the suspect and I had to decide whether I needed to shoot him or not. As I peered through my burning eyes I saw the suspect standing about eight feet in front of me with a pistol in his hand pointed at the ground. I shot him, much to the dismay of Deputy Johnson, I was supposed to give him a verbal command first and then shoot if necessary. I think I just got a little too excited!

The whole drill lasted only a few minutes, as the adrenaline faded away the pain really set in. I have never felt anything like this; my face was burning like a hot iron was pressed up against. Splashing cold water on my face afforded me some relief but this was short lived.

I could feel myself starting to hyper ventilate as my breathing became shallower and shallower. My partner Davis kept reminding me to take deep breaths which helped calm me down and stop me from going into a panic state. My eyes felt like they were stapled shut, and to pry them open just reminded me of how much they burned.

It took about thirty minutes for the effects to subside somewhat so that I could operate on a functional level, my face and left arm however were still burning right up until about 2300hours that night!

I never imagined I could burn that bad without actually being on fire, but I did learn two very important things from this exercise; one, OC is a great weapon and an excellent tool when used appropriately; and two, that no matter what happens to me or what pain I feel, I can still do what I need to and fight on.

Rock Dance

Skills are in full swing as of today! We have been divided into two teams; I have been placed on B team. My morning starts with four hours of Arrest Control; this will actually be our second four hour session.

Our first session we concentrated on personal weapons, which are basically strikes using various parts of our body. A lot of bag work was involved, which as you can imagine works up a good sweat. I love this class, I did Martial Arts for many years and have been looking to get back into it, and difference now is that they are paying me to do it! What club can beat that?

We also train in what is known as the Rock Dance; basically this is a balance exercise, two recruits square off on the mats, engage, and attempt to throw the other down. There is a twist to this though; every time you get thrown down you owe ten push ups to the class. If neither recruit in the Rock Dance throws the other down you both owe twenty push ups! Incentive is everything.

After lunch it is down to the range, they are going to pay me to shoot their ammunition! What could be better than that? We have had twenty four hours of class room instruction in firearms already, sixteen of which were spent practicing drawing weapons from our holsters, and tactical and combat reloads.

Our instructors really do a great job, we all had a lot of fun and personally I feel really good about going to the range and doing this with loaded weapons.

We had some timed drills in the class room, we started small, with only two seconds to draw our weapons, get on target and pull the trigger. Every time we beat the timer the seconds would get slashed. We are talking about some serious gun handling here, the last time we got down to was 1.2 seconds, only a handful of us could complete all the above steps in the time, myself included, not that I am one to brag of course. We have some recruits in this class that are real fast with their weapons, I am looking forward to training with them, I think we have a lot to offer each other and we work well together as a team.

Black Wednesday

Week seven didn't get off to a great start. The Labor Day weekend was over (yes they gave us the three day weekend) and it was back to work. Tuesday went by swimmingly, no hiccups, just another great day of academics.

Wednesday however proved to be a bit more of a nightmare. Test three was our first scheduled appointment that day. Tests are always stressful; anyone who has been to school can tell you that. This exam consisted of a number of subjects from sexual assault crimes to crimes against people. There were 100 questions, most multiple choice, some fill in the blanks. We have eight tests to complete during the course of the academy, not including the final POST exam and a score of 75% or more is needed to pass.

After the exam it was inspection time. We were dressed out in our Class A uniforms (long sleeved shirt with tie) and assembled in formation outside of the Sheriffs Office HQ. A sergeant from the Westminster PD was scheduled as our inspecting officer. Here is where our first mess up came. We were given the order to dress-right-dress, which basically means we move apart about and arms length from each other so the inspecting officer can have room to move in and around us. Who could mess that up right? Well it seems about half of us did. It was very embarrassing, and Deputy Johnson was not happy with us.

The sergeant from Westminster was one sharp guy. He picked up on all our faults, no matter how personal they may have been, he did not hold anything back. The Westminster recruits got the worst of it though; he had no mercy for them. He made one of them run in and pluck his nose hairs! Others had to go in and call friends to find the answers to questions they didn’t know!

Inspection lasted about an hour, after which we were scheduled for PT, this helped relieve some of the stress from the morning which was good, but it was short lived. After lunch Deputy Johnson was going over some of the issues from the inspection when he caught a few people not paying attention to him. This is not good, especially after we had already pissed him off! Thirty five pushups later and the point was driven home.

The week did however end on a good note. Thursday we started firearms training; this was eight hours of class room with sixteen more to come before we hit the range, a very welcome break from some of the more intensive studies. We got to put our duty belts together and get them prepared for the techniques we will be learning over the next few weeks.

Friday Deputy Johnson was very happy with our performance at Red Rocks that morning. It was a very tough workout and he was happy to see not one of us quit, and was proud at how we were pulling together as a team. The academy coordinators are good like that. Especially Deputy Johnson, he will kick your rear end in when you need and then pat you on the back when you deserve it. It all balances itself out.

Sergeant Scott

Finally we are in uniforms! Week six we finally get there. As much as I love my black training uniforms, or class C’s as they are known, they are a pain to keep lint free. Not to mention we all look better in our departmental uniforms.

Week six was my turn to be class Sergeant. I have to say I really enjoyed it. My first assignment was to lead our group in PT ad Red Rocks. This can be quite intimidating as the public is watching you, and videoing you, the pressure is definitely on.

I made a couple of mistakes when naming a couple of exercises’; I was quite fast to correct myself so I don’t think anyone except my fellow recruits noticed.

As Sergeant I found I had quite a bit of responsibility. Of course I have seen others do it but you don’t really get it until your there yourself. For example, class instructors will expect you to get the class in order after a break or at the beginning of the day. This was something I knew would be my responsibility, and to be honest with you I quite enjoyed telling my peers what to do, not that I’m a power tripper, please don’t get me wrong, it was just fun.

What is more fun is that they actually do it! We have a great group here in this academy. Everyone wants to succeed and understands what the person next to them is going through. I think we have molded together very well. Time has flown by very quickly, Deputy Hoffmann told me it is because of how well we have come together, and that our class has done very well as a team.

Flash Bang

In this blog I want to briefly touch on a few things that stood out for me this week. Firstly was PT at Red Rocks.

Anyone who knows Red Rocks will be familiar with the lay out, but basically at the top of the auditorium is a staging area where a number of concession stands are set up. We ordered into formation and told to march to this area. We were almost there when we told to stop and wait while Deputy Johnson went on ahead to prepare our activities for the morning.

So here we are in a two line formation, standing at attention, when a family walks by. As the father passed us he said, and I quote; "this must be the doughnut line." The few of us who were privilliaged enough to hear it could not help but laugh, his timing was perfect. This was just another example of how some members of community view us as law enforcement officers, too much Chief Wiggum from The Simpsons if you ask me!

We also had our second test this week. One hundred questions, seventy five right to pass. I found this test a little harder than the first one. My weakness I believe was the Bill of Rights questions. I know this information but I sometimes get the amendments confused with each other. I didn't do horribly in the exam but I know I could have improved; we have another eight tests before our final POST exam, so my ship hasn't sank yet. For the record I got 79%, test one I got 87%, congrats to our representative from Vail PD with a nice 95%.

This afternoon we had two members from the Jeffco SWAT team give us a lecture on their procedures and equipment. This was an awesome class! Let me say that these two guys were built like brick outhouses! Not the kind of guys you want to meet in a dark alley way.

They had a lot of interesting stories to tell from their experience, and were more than happy to share them with us. The last hour of the day they took us out and showed us some there equipment, talk about a kid in a candy shop, this was the highlight of the week for me.

They showed us there guns, ballistics shields, tactical vests, command bus. We got to handle them all (everything was safe) and get an idea of what these guys do. Their tactical vest for example, weighs in at about thirty pounds empty! Can you imagine wearing that for four to six hours at a time! Id lose weight if I just wore it in class all day.

The best thing by far, however, was the flash sound diversionary device, or 'flash bang.' If don’t know what a flash bang is I'll tell you. Basically it is a non-lethal grenade, that when detonated produces a deafening bang, and a blinding light. The idea is to temporally disable a subject by taking away vision and hearing, which buys an officer a few extra seconds to take control of hostile situation. Well, we got to experience it first hand. I was excited. I've heard a lot about flash bangs and have always wanted to be on the receiving end of one just for the experience. Let me tell you, if you had fight in you before this thing goes off, you will soon lose it. We were outside in broad daylight when we did this and it was still disorienting! I can only imagine what it would be like inside a building! Awesome, that’s one more thing scratched off my bucket list.

P.S Riles wants to say hi to his brother, an avid reader from what I understand. "Hi!"

Razor?

Formal inspection was scheduled 8/13 at 0800 hrs, this meant that the night before I was scrambling to get my uniforms in tip top shape. I ironed my pants, taking due care to get the creases just right. My shirts I pressed, my boots got another couple of layers of parade gloss, I was ready; at least I thought I was ready.

We stood in formation, four squads lining up symmetrically to each other. Sgt. Wygant walked in front of each recruit, checking for discrepancies in appearance. I thought I was gold. Turns out, not only did I not have my ID badge on me, and displayed in the right place, but I also forgot to shave! Thankfully Deputy Johnson wasn’t at this inspection or push ups and memos would have been in my future. Now I have a sticky note on my mirror with the word SHAVE written on it.

Another you need to know about inspections, is that it is not just our appearance that is under scrutiny but also our knowledge. We can be asked about literally anything. In all fairness the inspecting officer does try to keep it within what we have already been taught.

As you can imagine this can make for a stressful inspection, not to mention a very interesting inspection, as was the case for me.

Skid Marks

Last week we had a class on accident investigation. This was our first out of the classroom, hands on lecture. We of course had some time in the classroom, learning how to preserve the scene, the steps we go through if we are the first on scene, and also how to judge the speed a vehicle was going by looking at the skid marks on the road and other evidence that is left behind at the scene of a crash.

We had three instructors from the Westminster Police Department teach us, all of them had extensive knowledge on the subject, as well as a lot of experience in the field. We discussed real life accidents, looking at pictures from the scenes, and had explained to us the chain of events that caused the accident based on our instructor's personal investigation.

When we got out of the classroom, our first project was to examine skid marks, this was really cool. One of the instructors got into a patrol car at a safe location, and performed some high speed braking for us. We would then examine the skid marks, judge what mark was left by the rear tires, and what were left by the front tires. We would measure the length of the mark and calculate the speed of the vehicle at time of braking.

The next exercise that was set up was a mock accident. Two vehicles were set up on a public sidewalk, there were skid marks in the road, and we had witnesses to question. Apart from actually having an accident, this was as close to the real thing as they could make.

We were set up into groups, assigned responsibilities and sent on our way. My job, along with my partner Eric, was to take measurements from the accident, judge the point of impact, and relay our info back to the team so we could get a full picture of what happened. Once we had taken all the information, we then went back to the class room to write an accident report form, and decide who was at fault in the accident, and what charge we were going to cite them with.

Fallen Officers

First thing this morning we had inspection. Let me tell you, even at eight in the morning, especially when your uniforms are black, it is very hot. This can make standing to attention very difficult.

Inspection is fun however. At least I think so, that could just of course be because Deputy Johnson is going easy on us right now. Now please don’t get me wrong. I do work hard to get my uniform looking good. For the past three weeks I have been spit shinning my boots! I must have at least twenty to thirty layers of Kiwi parade gloss on there, with still more to go. My pants are pressed neatly, and my shirt ironed.

There is a lot of work that needs to be done. Anyone that gets into the academy, and thinks it’s a nine to five job, had better think again. There is studying and homework you have to do on your own time, uniforms need to be ready for the next day, you get one set of PT gear, and that has to be washed every time you use it, as it must be with you at all times.

That aside, what I really wanted to briefly talk about was our inspection this morning. Our class sergeant last week assigned us, under orders, a name of a Peace Officer who at some point in Colorado's history had been killed in the line of duty.

During inspection we had a moments silence in remembrance of these brave officers. With our heads bowed, standing at-ease, we then took turns starting with highest rank, and called the name, department and year the officer was killed.

Now, when your turn comes, you immediately stand to attention and in a loud clear voice and sound off, return to the original position and pay respects as you hear the name of other fallen officers.

The importance of this to me, is not just so we don’t forget the sacrifices made for us, although this is the main reason, but also a reminder to us all of the challenges we will face in our careers. To always be mind full that these dangers exist, and that we must prepare ourselves physically and mentally so that one day we will retire instead of having the next Academy class reading our names.

The Naked Run

To start I want to talk a little about the challenges that face me personally as I transitioned between careers. Before I got into the Academy I worked commercial construction as a carpenter. All of my work was hands on, so sitting in a class room is not something I’m used too. Also, it has been a while since I’ve studied academically, so I’m finding it hard to organize myself in that area. Luckily it’s the beginning of week two and I’ve figured this out in time to work on it.

Sgt Wygant spoke to us after class today about the academic side of this Academy. He explained to us that it can be boring, and definitely not as fun as say, being at the range, or on the driving course. I think we can all agree with him on that! However, he also explained that the Law classes were the skills we are going to be using everyday as Deputies. It’s not the shooting, or the driving, all though these are important skills to have also. The classes are very structured, and the instructors really know what there talking about, and do their best to make the classes fun.

We have had a couple of lectures on Criminal Justice. These classes can seem very long winded, but they are very interesting at the same time, not to mention the back bone of our profession.

Monday and Tuesday we had lectures on Ethics and Unbiased Policing. This was a nice change of pace. Group discussion was the focus of the class, and as we were discussing issues such as stereo types, racism, sexism, we were encouraged to be honest and open minded about our subject matter.

One thing about stepping into this profession, that is rarely found anywhere else, is the way in which you are welcomed into the family. Every one you meet wants you to succeed. They are actually interested in you, and want to know who you are. I was working out in the gym at the HQ this morning before class, and a twenty year veteran struck a conversation with me. He congratulated me many times on my success at making it into the Academy. He was genuinely interested in what I had to say, here I am, the bottom of the barrel, the new guy, and people want to talk to me!

Today we were scheduled for our second round of PT. We were told yesterday, however, that PT was cancelled because of an unforeseen clash in the schedule, and that the Jeffco guys would get an extended lunch! Nice, we thought…… how foolish of us! At around 11am. Sgt Wygant informed us that PT was back on, and that we had a few minutes to get into PT gear and fall into formation. Now in a perfect world, everyone would be prepared for a pleasant surprise such as this and have the gear they needed with them. This was not the case.

What you have to understand, is that we must look uniformed. If one guy wants to wear sun glasses on a run, we all have to. The same goes if someone forgets something, we all live with out it. Such was the case today. A recruit left his running shoes at home! “Nobody will wear running shoes today; we will run in our boots!” As you can imagine, excitement filled the class. Personally I was just grateful he remembered his shorts! I don’t think my wife would appreciate me running around Golden naked, and neither would the citizens of Golden! After all I am trying to make friends. Someone came to the rescue and lent our fellow recruit a pair of running shoes, and our boots stayed nice and polished in our lockers for one more day.

Week 1

Thirty-six brand new Recruits converged upon the center classroom at the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office main Headquarters, Monday morning at 07:30 hrs. Surrounded by the top brass from many of our state law enforcement agencies. The Sheriff and Under Sheriff of Jefferson County, and a number of police Chiefs, Captains, Division Commanders, Sargeants and so on.

Excitement was high, as were the nerves of thirty six strangers.

We were introduced to our Academy Coordinators. Deputy Johnson. Deputy Hoffmann, and Sgt Wygant.

The first week for me was stress full. Especially the first couple of days. I had an idea of what was expected of me, yet still the fear of the unknown reared its ugly head. Here I was accomplishing my goals, living the dream if you will, yet I was on high alert.

Rules were laid down. The importance of Discipline. Our twenty week goal was high lighted for us all, and our graduation date set.

Back to the thirty six recruits I mentioned. We have a very diverse group of individuals, with a varied age group and from all walks of life. There are ex-military among us. Some have worked in Detentions for various Law Enforcement agencies. We have construction workers, real estate agents, and teachers, business owners and Bankers to name but a few. All however has one thing in common, Law Enforcement.

Deputy Johnson let us know from the start, that these thirty six individuals will mold into one team. That it will happen very quickly, and that is how we will survive the twenty weeks ahead of us.

Already in our first week, we have practiced formations, and standards of discipline. This is a Para-Military organization, Deputy Johnson seemed pleased with how we were learning these, yet at the same time disappointed that he didn’t have to make us do push ups! As much I love push ups, I’m hoping to prolong his disappointment as much as possible.

Majority of our time in this first week was spent in class room lectures. From Crime Prevention, to Stress Management, these Lectures, in my opinion, were very well structured and presented. We have a lot to learn, and only twenty weeks to do it in, but I have faith with the way the Academy is organized that we will all succeed.

Thursday was the first day we were in uniform, and also our first official uniform inspection. We were ordered to wear our Class C uniforms, which consist of black BDU pants, with black Academy polo shirt and boots. I am glad to report that our first inspection went rather well. Boots were shining and shirts were pressed. This for me was the first time we took a step from being thirty six individuals to one team. We still have a way to go yet but were on the right track.

Our Class motto was picked. “Let Valor Not Fail.” This was thought up by our Class Sergeant and voted on by the class.

Monday morning of week two, is our first PT exercise. I know Deputy Johnson is looking forward to it, and so, I guess, should I.

Let Me Introduce Myself

My name is Anthony. I am 28 years old. I was born in Dublin, Ireland. I come from a huge family, with many brothers and sisters. When I was six, my parents took us from Ireland to live in St Paul, Minnesota. After 18 months there we moved again! This time to London, England.

I went to high school at Mellow Lane Comprehensive in London. Graduatuated when I was 16 (that’s when everyone graduates in England, I'm nothing special) and then did two years in college. I took a GNVQ in Acting and Performing Arts studies at the City of Westminster College.

I have been in Denver for over 6 years now. Met my wife here five years ago and have been happily married for the past four years.

People always ask me: "why do you want to be a cop?", "it’s a thankless job," etc. This profession, in my opinion, is something you are called to do. This is why I sometimes feel I have a hard time answering these questions. For me, I have this burning desire to be here. Since I was a small boy, I always dreamt of being a cop. All the games I wanted to play where based on cop shows and movies we watched growing up.

What really got the cop fire burning for me. Were the endless conversations I had with my Father in Law. He is a retired Deputy Sheriff from the Jefferson County Sheriff's office. Let me tell you, this man loved his profession! Between him and my wife's uncle who was also a Deputy Sheriff at Jefferson County, and now currently works for a city department, I was never shy of cop stories.

The time had come. After two applications, two written tests, two physical tests, two interviews, two polygraphs, a year and a half later, I was finally here.

For those of you who want to be here at some point, or if you are just truly interested in what goes on in a real life police academy, I make this commitment to you. For the next 20 weeks, I will give you an insight into what it takes, to become a Peace Officer. From the lectures we get, to our PT and everything in between, for you it’s just a mouse click away.