Law enforcement agencies plan citizens academy

COEUR d’ALENE — Area law enforcement agencies are preparing to offer a free academy where citizens can learn how law enforcement agencies work in their community.

The Multi-Agency Citizens Academy will start on Jan. 12 and will be hosted by Post Falls Police Department, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, Rathdrum Police, and the Coeur d’Alene Police Department.

“This isn’t the first time we’ve done this,” said CPD Sgt. Christie Wood. “The last one we held was in 2009, and we had one for about three years before that.”

The purpose of the academy is to develop positive relations between law enforcement and the community through education. The academy is structured as an informational program to give citizens a broad understanding of the inner workings of local law enforcement.

Wood said participants will learn a little bit of everything the classes will start out with introductions and the basics of how police are hired and what they do in the patrol and detective divisions.

As the academy progresses students will participate in several training activities including a demonstration on the FATS machine, a shooting simulator officers use for training, Wood said.

Wood said there will also be demonstrations of the SWAT teams, K-9 teams and tasers.

“It’s really pretty cool,” Wood said. “Topics really are all over the map.”

At the end of the course there is a graduation ceremony.

“Hopefully by the end of the academy some of them will be so enamored they apply to become a volunteer,” Wood said.

Participants will meet for three hours on Tuesday nights for seven weeks as well as two Saturday morning classes. Applicants should apply with the law enforcement agency serving the area in which they live. Each agency is able to sponsor 10 participants and class size is limited to 40 participants.

Applicants will be notified if they are chosen for the academy. Coeur d’Alene area residents can download the 2016 Citizen’s Academy brochure at https://www.cdaid.org/police or pick up an application at the Coeur d’Alene Police Department.

Applicants must be at least 18 years of age, have no misdemeanor conviction of any crime of violence, not be the subject of any pending criminal investigation or criminal court case, and not be the respondent of an active No Contact Order or Civil Protection Order.

Applicants with a felony conviction will not be selected to attend the Citizen’s Academy. The deadline for postmarked applications is Dec. 21.

For additional questions about the Citizens Academy, contact Lt. Curtis Exley at Post Falls Police 773-3517; Lt. Mike McFarland at Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, 446-2244; Lt. Tomi McLean at Rathdrum Police, 687-0711; or Lt. Bill McLeod at Coeur d’Alene Police, 769-2320.