Sneak peek at February Uptown: Law enforcement training trends

By Sarita Chourey, Uptown editor/content manager 

Officers training at the Criminal Justice Academy (credit/Florence McCants)

Vetting new police recruits on the front end can do a lot to help departments move new hires through the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy. It’s also helpful to prepare recruits by putting them through a “pre-academy” program.

"The slots are so valuable that it behooves everyone to do due diligence to send the best possible candidate," said CJA Director Jackie Swindler. "It saddens me to see some candidates who come through who are not going to be successful." 

Find out what else Swindler recommends in this early look at what’s in store for the February issue of Uptown. The full issue will be online and in mailboxes next week.
 

Swindler will also be one of the speakers at Hometown Legislative Action Day, Wednesday, February 1, for a panel that will discuss law enforcement trends as well as proposals for CJA funding, which are part of the Municipal Association's 2017 Advocacy Initiatives. S.C. Department of Social Services Law Enforcement Liaison Larry McNeil and Ryan Alphin, executive director of the S.C. Law Enforcement Officers’ Association and the S.C. Police Chiefs Association, will also participate in the panel.

There’s additional information on this topic of recruiting and retaining police officers in this presentation by Todd Williams, public safety loss control consultant for the Municipal Association, at the recent meeting of the S.C. City/County Management Association.

Also read this Uptown article from 2016 that looks at lessons learned from other states to illustrate why it’s important to review recruitment policies and training practices to prevent similar occurrences.