Law enforcement academy invites citizens to learn more about the job

By Riley Funk

Residents will have the opportunity to learn about the different aspects of law enforcement through a program put on by the police department and sheriff’s office.

The Joint Citizen’s Law Enforcement Academy, which begins April 2, is a nine-week seminar that gives residents a look behind the curtain of day-to-day operations locally.

Participants will learn about different parts of law enforcement including crime scene investigating, training and a look inside the Buchanan County Jail.

Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett said this program is a great opportunity for residents to learn more about these local agencies.

“We pretty much cover everything top to bottom, whether it’s criminal investigation, patrol, K-9, firearms, SRT, jail or courthouse security, sex offender registry,” Puett said.

There will be opportunities for participants to meet others behind the scenes who aren’t always in the public eye. This includes looking into the communications center and going on ride-alongs with fellow officers.

“We try to make as much available to our citizens as possible so they can see what it’s like, what we’re doing and kind of engage them,” Puett said.

The benefit for law enforcement is the chance to have open conversations with citizens in the community. Puett said it helps law enforcement gain new allies in St. Joseph.

“You’ll see a lot of these men and women that go through this program that become very, very staunch advocates for supporting law enforcement,” Puett said. “They go out and become great ambassadors by trying to help educate other people that sometimes question what we do.”

Interested residents are encouraged to sign up.

“I really enjoy it. If you’re interested, come on down, we would love to have you,” Puett said. “The big thing is just interacting with all the dedicated men and women of both the sheriff’s office and the police department that are working behind the scenes.”

The running of the program will be every Tuesday night starting on April 2 going from 6 to 9:30 p.m., according to the city website.

For more information about the Joint Citizens Academy, visit https://www.stjosephmo.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1989.