Clark County Residents Turn Out For Citizens’ Police Academy

Law enforcement in one Central Kentucky city wants you to get a taste of what they do; both what you see on the streets and what happens when officers aren’t on patrol.

"Citizen’s Police Academy, we started in 2010,” said Captain James Hall, Winchester Police. That’s how the officer introduced the Citizen’s Police Academy to a group of 30 or so interested residents of Clark County.

2010 was the last time folks in Winchester and Clark County got an inside look at local law enforcement.

A lot has happened since then, including officer involved shootings across the country and what police call a misconception about what they do.

"When issues like that pop up in other parts of the country, for us to get the message out this is what we really do and this is how we’re trained and it’s a little transparency for the citizens to see what we do on a daily basis,” said Captain Hall.

There were those who’ve been through the program before and first timers, like Leslie McCammish.

"Find out more about what’s going on in our community." That’s what McCammish hopes to do through the program.

Officers hope she and her classmates, leave the program after 12 weeks with a greater understanding about what police do.

"I want you to see how our law enforcement officers are out there on the streets and what they’re confronted with,” explained Winchester’s police chief.

The class gets to see what it’s like on the streets. Before the 12 weeks is up, CPA participants will have been on a ride-along with an officer and taken part in use of force training.