17th Citizens' Police Academy Wraps Up Classes

The 17th Citizens' Police Academy wrapped up a 10-week schedule of classes on Tuesday night with a look at the Dalton Police Department's School Resource Officer program, the Whitfield County Emergency Services division, and a lecture on criminal procedures.  The class will attend a graduation banquet next week.

Tuesday's class opened up with the department's two School Resource Officers (SRO) discussing their duties with the Dalton City Schools.  Officers Terry Smith and Brandon Carter do much more than just watch the halls during classes.  They have a wide variety of duties that range from working with troubled kids to protecting the school from unauthorized visitors.  They also do some teaching, covering topics like safety and law classes.

Below: Officers Terry Smith (left) and Brandon Carter (right) address the Citizens' Police Academy class (click for a larger version of the image).

 

The class continued with a discussion of Whitfield County's 911 system.  Representatives from Whitfield County Emergency Services discussed the system with the class, including its history and the different uses of E-911 and the Reverse 911 systems.  They also discussed the operation of the 911 center itself, where operators go through a six-month training course before they become full-fledged telecommunicators.  Operators work on 12-hour shifts from 6 AM to 6 PM, rotating between the night shift and the day shift.

Below: Whitfield County Emergency Services spokesperson Ashlee Swilling discusses the 911 system (click for a larger version of the image).

 

The night wrapped up with a discussion of criminal procedure from Detective John Helton.  Helton discussed different ways the Constitution, state and local laws, and case law govern the ways that police officers can conduct searches, seizures, and also discussed what makes up probable cause for officers to carry out arrests.

Comments

[Up in Pennsylvania]

I think it's great you do this. I wish more towns did. I think citizens academies are an excellent way for the public to understand police operations.