It is that time of the year again when we at the Benton Police Department will be hosting our annual citizen’s police academy. For the second year we will be conducting a citizen’s police academy geared towards women and safety aspects associated with them.
The citizen’s police academy is an eight session program designed to give participants a better understanding of police functions and responsibilities. They will be able to experience such classes as; criminal investigation, patrol functions, narcotic investigations, school resource, crime prevention, traffic stops, and the gun range.
Additionally, with this program being geared towards our female citizen’s we will feature a class devoted solely to women’s safety issues and domestic violence investigations. This is in-part due to the fact that October is domestic violence awareness month and we feel that education is a key to help prevent it and recognize the signs of it occurring to others.
Those that are interested need to apply in person at the Benton Police Department, (114 S. East St., Suite 100), and fill out the application and release forms. There will be a 15 person limit on the class and it will be on a first come first served basis to those that fill out and turn in their applications first.
The classes will start on Tuesday, Sept. 24th and the only qualifications are that the participant is a resident of Benton, at least 18 years of age, female, and cannot have any previous felony convictions on their record. Deadline to turn in applications will be Friday, September 20th at 5:00 PM.
This is the eleventh year for the citizen’s police academy to be conducted by our department and something we take pride in providing to our citizen’s. It is our hope that by focusing on women’s safety during this year’s course that we can prevent them from becoming victims and enable them to handle themselves in a variety of situations they may encounter. Any questions about this program may be referred to Sgt. Lisa Stuart or Lt. Kevin Russell at 776-5948.
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