Citizens enroll in first ever Citizens Police Academy

The very first Rusk Citizens Police Academy officially kicked off Tuesday, Jan. 8, at the Rusk Public Library, with 22 Rusk citizen cadets present.

The group also boasts people from all walks of life -- from a 17-year-old Rusk High School student with aspirations of a career in law enforcement to a 70-year-old retiree who’s just interested in helping keep his community safer. Others in the group include a former U.S. Marine; the Cherokeean Herald newspaper’s editor and staff reporter; a longtime volunteer firefighter; the library’s director; several local business owners; staffers of the Tree of Promise; Kenny Rogers’s third cousin; a retired TDCJ officer; even the Chamber of Commerce lady.

“We organized this to help our department strengthen the positive connections with our community,” Rusk Police Chief Joe Williams said as his first class of cadets received their official shirts and class material. “The ultimate goal of the Citizens Police Academy is to improve the relationship and rapport between the Rusk police and the citizens of Rusk. The program also gives citizens the opportunity to express their concerns and ask questions. This two-way communication between police officers and the public has proven to be an effective, successful way to accomplish the goals and objectives of the Citizens Police Academy.”

As citizen cadets munched pizza, they got an introduction to the course, which includes information and interesting facts on police procedure, administration, operations and investigations.

“Tonight was very educational and extremely fun,” Academy cadet Steve Goode said. “Thank you, Chief Joe, for giving of your time. Everyone in there seemed to enjoy it.”

Through the eight-week class, Academy participants will also get the chance to become familiar with the use of a TAZER; drive a patrol car; ride along with an on-duty officer and shoot firearms.

“I’m so proud to be part of a program like this,” Academy cadet Monica Thomasson said in post on social media. “Thank you, Rusk Police Department and Chief Williams for taking steps to build a stronger community.”

According to the website, PoliceOne.com, when a department organizes a citizen’s police academy, citizens are being given an insight to better understanding police procedures, responsibilities and the demands police officers face.

“It’s a tough time to be a cop,” the website states. “Typically, when members of law enforcement watch the latest police video to hit the mainstream media, we have one of two reactions: A) ‘That was a good arrest (or use of force). I would have done the same thing,’ or B) ‘What the $%&*?! What were they thinking?! Another idiot tarnishing the badge!’

“Unfortunately, the general public seems much more inclined to the latter reaction. Unfortunately, this perception creates more suspicion, hostility and fear toward law enforcement as a whole. At the root of many of these negative emotions is a basic lack of knowledge about law enforcement. We tend to fear what we don’t understand.

“A CPA is a unique and powerful means to increase the community’s empathy and sympathy for law enforcement officers. It provides an opportunity to humanize law enforcement officers, to get to know the actual person behind the badge.”

The Criminal Justice Institute reports the CPA first began in Exeter, England, in 1977, to teach the citizens about the function and organization of the police system.

“Several years later, CPA made its way to the U.S. with the first known CPA being held in Orlando, Fla., in 1985,” states a report titled ‘Bridging the Gap: Educating Communities on the Realities of Law Enforcement through a Citizens Police Academy’ states.

The report, as found at the website, cji.edu, says the U.S. Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported in 2007 that 15 percent of all departments surveyed conducted a Citizen Police Academy.

Rusk’s Citizens Police Academy will be held every Tuesday, in various venues, through Feb. 26.

“We’re very pleased we’ve got this going now,” Rusk Police Association President Nathan Acker said. “We’d been discussing doing this for a while and we’re hoping it’ll be something that catches on and grows in popularity.”