Civilian Police Training

By Debbie Williams Reporter

Becoming a police officer is almost as tough as the job itself. Civilian Police Training

Published: Thu, September 27, 2007 - 4:41 pm Last Updated: Thu, September 27, 2007 - 7:49 pm

Debbie Williams

A police officers job is one of the toughest out there and becoming one is almost as hard.
A group of people who want to serve and protect are finding out just how hard in Foley. They've just begun training and some are not making the grade.
David McKee is chasing a dream. "I'm here in hopes of becoming one of Foley's finest."
He is among sixty civilian candidates who want to be cops. "My grandfather was a narcotics agent so it's just something I've wanted to do like to help people."
To do that he will have to complete the minimum standards of physical training. "They've got to do a number of sit ups and push-ups and run a mile and a half in a certain amount of time," says Chief David Wilson.
A mile and a half in under fifteen minutes, 28 seconds.
Six months ago they were among 200 applicants for just over 20 jobs. Lt. David White has been there from the beginning. "We pull for all of them. We want the best of the best because we're the best police department in this state now and we want the best officers on the road for our citizens. The more we have that we can select from the better officers we're going to have."
The end of the physical training test is just the beginning of the process. A process that could take another six months before they are police officers.
For some, this is the end of the line. For others, like McKee, it's just the beginning. "It's a great start to what hopefully can be a great career," says McKee.
Thirteen of 59 candidates that started the class failed.
The physical training is just the beginning. Those who pass now face criminal background checks, including a driving history. A written and oral exam, along with psychological and polygraph tests.