WESTFIELD—Police are looking for residents to join them for their Citizen Police Academy starting on Jan. 30.
The Westfield Police Department is accepting applications from those interested for the next Citizen Police Academy, which begins on Jan. 30 and will run until April 17, with space limited to 16 participants and applications due Jan. 26, at 4 p.m. Those who join gain an exclusive look at what Westfield police do on a day-to-day basis, from law enforcement procedures to investigation to gun handling.
“It gives you a lot more insight into law enforcement and the Westfield Police Department and what we do on a day-to-day basis; decision making process we go through, laws that have to be applied,” Westfield Police Lt. Eric Hall said.
“It’s an education, it lets us educate the public and allows those people to turn around and be ambassadors for us,” Hall added.
The upcoming class will be the 17th such academy held by the department over a roughly 25-year period, Hall said.
The program runs for a total of 12 weeks, starting on Jan. 30, with all but one class occurring on Tuesday evenings from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. The one class not held on Tuesday will occur on a Saturday. It is free for those who sign up, with the only costs incurred would be for items or events for celebrating the experience, such as t-shirts or a banquet.
Classes included in the academy cover topics such as criminal law, financial crimes, drug identification, crime scene investigation, defensive tactics and firearm safety. A course also takes place on a firing range.
“Each week a different topic is taught by a different member of the police department,” Hall said.
According to Hall, the academy fills quickly, so those interested are encouraged to sign up. Hall will also be creating a waiting list for the program from those who are not able to sign up in time, in case someone has to drop out of the course.
In order to be eligible to sign up, applicants must be 21 years of age or older, either live or work in Westfield, have no prior felony arrests and no misdemeanor arrests within the last two years. In addition, the police department’s website notes that any other previous civil or criminal involvement will be evaluated case-by-case.
For the application, click here or visit the Westfield Police website under the “Departments” tab at the City of Westfield website. There, you can find a downloadable version of the application. Otherwise, applications can be picked up in person by stopping by the Westfield Police Department on Washington Street or the Community Police Resource Center on Elm Street, or you can contact Hall for more information by calling (413)642-9383, or by email at [email protected].
