SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Feb. 16, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Nineteen new police recruits have graduated from the Salt Lake City Police Academy.
“Becoming a Salt Lake City police officer is more than just being a crime fighter,” SLCPD Chief Mike Brown said it a released statement.
“We are problem solvers, effective communicators, and guardians to every person who lives in, works, or visits our community.”
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall also welcomed the graduates.
“I am so grateful for those who serve our city each day, and I’m thrilled to welcome a new recruit class to our outstanding police department,” she said. “So much sacrifice, work, and mental fortitude goes into becoming an officer, and I’m forever thankful for those who choose to serve our capital city.”
As outlined in the SLCPD 2022 Updated Crime Control Plan, filling all sworn positions is a top priority for the department.
For nearly seven months, the SLCPD Training Unit provided the recruit officers with training around legal, reality-based (scenario), defensive tactics, firearms, crisis intervention, and emergency vehicle operations.
The officers now enter the next phase of their training process, field training. The graduates will be partnered with a Field Training Officer (FTO) and are evaluated on how they perform the day-to-day functions of a patrol officer.
“Our academy is challenging and hard for a reason,” Brown said. “The training unit provides these women and men with the tools necessary to do a job that is heavily scrutinized but critically important to our community.”
The Salt Lake City Police Academy is a satellite academy that meets the guidelines and criteria set by the Utah Police Officer Standards and Training.
As of Thursday, the SLCPD has 34 vacant sworn positions from its authorized staffing level set by city council.
On Jan. 23 of this year, the SLCPD welcomed 17 recruits who are a part of an upcoming class, and who are anticipated to graduate in July.
Anyone interested in applying to be a police officer with the SLCPD can visit this link.
