Dalton Police Blog

Citizens' Academy Wraps Up With Banquet

The Dalton Police Department's 2010 Citizens' Police Academy wrapped up on Tuesday night with a graduation banquet held at Ryman Hall.  The banquet, catered by the Filling Station restaurant on Hamilton Street.  Each participant in the Citizens' Academy was invited to take part and bring along their family.

The evening started with a short speech by program coordinator Sergeant Mike Dyer, followed by an invocation by Chaplain Ray McCranie.  After dinner was served, Chief Jason Parker greeted the class and then was joined on the stage by Assistant Chief Truman Whitfield, Sergeant Dyer, and Public Safety Commission Chairman Bill Weaver (who completed his second Citizens' Academy on Tuesday night) to hand out diplomas.

Applications will be taken for the next Citizens' Academy class this winter.  Keep checking the Dalton Police Blog for details.

Click "Play" in the window below for a video from Tuesday night's graduation banquet (video may take a few moments to load, for higher quality mouse over the "360p" tab and select "480p")

SRO and Criminal Procedure at the Citizens' Academy

Tuesday night, the Dalton Police Department's 2010 Citizens' Police Academy wrapped up with a look at the department's School Resource Officer program and also a discussion of Criminal Procedure.

Officer Terry Smith, one of the department's first School Resource Officers, spoke to the Citizens' Academy group first.  Officer Smith is assigned to Dalton Middle School, and also floats between half of the city's elementary schools.  Another officer is assigned to Dalton High School.  The officers aren't the disciplinarians for the schools, and they aren't part of the administration.  They simply investigate crimes on school campuses, serve as teachers for certain classes involving law enforcement, and attend all extracurricular events like sporting events or dances.

Detective John Helton wrapped up the evening with a two-hour look at Criminal Procedure.  Simply put, Criminal Procedure covers everything from the way police officers go about the business of patrolling the city, investigating crimes, and arresting offenders.  Detective Helton covered the issue of probable cause to make arrests, obtain warrants, and search suspects' homes or person.  He also discussed how different case law affects the way police do business, such as the Miranda vs. Arizona ruling which states that officers have to inform an arrested suspect of their right to remain silent and right to an attorney before questioning.  He also dispelled the myth that an officer must read those rights to an offender every time they make an arrest.  The only time a Miranda warning is required is when an individual is under arrest and also being interrogated.  That was the biggest surprise of the night for the members of the academy class.

Next week marks the official end of the Citizens' Academy, with a banquet at Ryman Hall.

Below: Officer Terry Smith (first picture) discusses his role as a School Resource Officer, and Detective John Helton leads a discussion of Criminal Procedure (click images for a larger version).

Citizens' Academy vs. The FATS

There were several officer-involved shootings on Tuesday night at the Dalton Police Department, but none of them really happened.  Members of the department's 2010 Citizens' Police Academy class were simply taking their turn with the FATS machine, which stands for Firearms Training Simulator.

Tuesday night's lesson the use of force, including the laws that govern the use of force by both law enforcement officers and citizens, culminated with a demonstration of the FATS machine, which uses replicas of the guns and tasers used by department officers which have been converted for use as a simulator.  Officers are shown different video scenarios which are projected on a screen.  The simulation is controlled by an officer operating the computer, choosing how the characters on screen react based on the officer's decisions.  If the officer fires a weapon, the computer records hits on the screen. 

Tuesday night, the members of the Citizens' Academy learned first-hand how fast things can go bad on a traffic stop, or any other law enforcement scenario.  In experiencing some of the same training scenarios faced by Dalton officers, they learned about some of the tough decisions police officers hope they'll never have to make.  The decision to use deadly force is one that most law enforcement officers will go their entire careers without facing.  But it's one that they constantly train and prepare for.

To watch video of Tuesday night's Citizens' Police Academy class, click "Play" in the window below (video may take a few moments to load).

CSI: Citizens' Academy

Click here to read about Tuesday night's CSI presentation in the Dalton Daily Citizen.

The TV show "CSI" shines the bright lights of Hollywood on the practice of investigating crime scenes.  But, it's a lot different in the real world of police work, and Tuesday night, members of the Dalton Police Department's Citizens' Police Academy got a chance to watch "CSI" in real life. 

DPD Crime Scene Investigator Mack Flood spoke to the group, describing how he processes crime scenes, showing some of the tools of the trade, and also letting the group tour the department's crime scene vehicle.  Detective Flood also showed some pictures taken at various crime scenes he's investigated in the past, explaining what happened in each, and how investigators processed the scene to determine what happened in each case.

And, of course, he also took a few minutes to debunk some of the myths perpetuated by shows like "CSI".  For example, in the real world, it takes longer than ten minutes to get DNA results back!

Below: Members of the DPD Citizens' Academy tour the Crime Scene Unit truck (click images for a larger version)

Citizens' Academy Hits the Range

The DPD's Citizens' Police Academy met at the Whitfield County Firing Range on Tuesday night, getting an up close and personal look at the weapons DPD officers use in the field.  Department firearms instructors showed off the Sig Sauer 40-caliber hand gun, as well as a department-issued shotgun, and an AR-15 rifle.  The academy members also got a look at the department's "less lethal" shotgun, which fires a beanbag projectile.  Academy members also got to fire the guns themselves, under the watchful eyes of instructors.

To watch video from Tuesday night's class, click "Play" in the window below (video may take a few moments to load)

Do Not Pass "Go"

Members of the Dalton Police Department's Citizens' Police Academy went directly to jail on Tuesday night, but fortunately were able to get right back out again.  This week's session focused on what happens to the accused after they're arrested by the DPD, and featured a presentation from District Attorney Kermit McManus, followed by a tour of the Whitfield County Jail. 

Mr. McManus explained the various functions of his office, the Conasauga Circuit District Attorney's Office which covers Whitfield and Murray Counties.  He also explained the role of prosecutors in general.

The tour of the Whitfield County Jail was led by Lt. Wes Lynch of the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office.  Lt. Lynch is one of the supervisors of the jail, and before letting academy members tour the various parts of the jail (including one of the housing pods), he also explained the various other functions of the Sheriff's Office.

Below (from left): District Attorney Kermit McManus discusses prosecution with the members of the Citizens' Police Academy, Whitfield County Sheriff's Office Lt. Wes Lynch leads a tour of the Booking section of the Jail, and members of the academy class tour a housing pod (click images for a larger version)

Support, Tasers, and Crashes at the Citizens' Police Academy

The Citizens' Police Academy met on Tuesday night at the Dalton Police Department for a discussion of the department's Support Services Division, the Traffic Enforcement Unit, and the department's use of Tasers.

Sergeant Pat Meyer, the DPD Certification Sergeant, started the night with an overview of Support Services, which is comprised of the department's training division, property and evidence, professional standards, certification, public and media relations, and all civilian employees of the department.

Up next, Officer Ricky Long demonstrated the use of the Taser device, including a discussion of the department's policy on the device's use and also showed some videos of Taser use from agencies across the country.

Officers Steve Zahn and Shaun Scott wrapped up the festivities, discussing the work of the department's traffic unit with both enforcing traffic law and also investigating traffic crashes.  Each member of the Citizens' Academy class also got to take a spin on Fatal Vision, a golf cart which is part of the department's drunk driving awareness program.  Each driver wears a pair of goggles designed to simulate alcohol impairment, trying to navigate a course of traffic cones.  The results were predictably poor.

Below (from top left): Sergeant Pat Meyer discusses the role of the Support Services Division, Officer Ricky Long teaches about Tasers, Officer Steve Zahn shows participants the remains of a vehicle from a recent traffic crash in Dalton, and a participant wearing special goggles to simulate impairment attempts to navigate the Fatal Vision course (click images to see larger versions).

Drugs, Safety at the Citizens' Police Academy

The third meeting of the Dalton Police Department's Citizens' Police Academy took place Tuesday night at the Police Services Center, covering the Drug Unit, the Situational Response Unit (SRU) and also Avoiding Victimization.

Detectives from the department's Drug Unit opened the night with a discussion of their duties, and also some of the different illegal drugs being used in Dalton.  Then, Officer Brian Shirley talked to the class about different ways to stay safe and avoid becoming victims of crime, including different methods to safeguard homes and property.  Then, Officers Scott Murray and Tommy Ensley from the SRU closed the class by discussing their duties, which include street-level drug interdiction. 

Below: Officers Murray and Ensley pose before discussing the SRU with the Citizens' Academy class, and Officer Shirley talks to the class about protecting themselves (click images for a larger version)

Citizens' Police Academy Returns for Week Two

After missing class last week due to winter weather, the Dalton Police Department's Citizens' Police Academy resumed class on Tuesday night with a look at the Criminal Investigations Division. 

CID houses the DPD's detectives, both general assignment detectives and the Drug Unit and detectives from the Safe Streets Gang Task Force.  Sergeant Chris Crossen, Operations Sergeant for CID started the evening off with an overview of the CID's functions, and then a detective with the Gang Task Force finished the evening with a discussion of gangs, their members, and what the DPD has done to curb their activity in Dalton and the surrounding area.

CID will be in the spotlight again later in the Academy, as other detectives go in-depth about the Drug Unit, Polygraphing, Crime Scene Investigation, and other functions of the division.

Below: Citizens' Academy coordinator Sergeant Mike Dyer addresses the class, and then Sergeant Chris Crossen discusses the Criminal Investigations Division (click images for larger versions).

Citizens' Police Academy Cancelled Tonight

Tonight's meeting of the Citizens' Police Academy has been cancelled due to snowy weather conditions.  The class will resume next week as scheduled.