LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – At the many school board meetings and public forums to pick the next superintendent, school safety was top of mind for several parents and students FOX5 spoke to. Our crew just heard from some of those who will be serving and protecting your students, after a recent graduation.
The Clark County School District Police Department now has more officers to keep your kids safe. Six new officers got to put on the badge, after nearly six months of training.
“It was fun, it had its moments, definitely a lot of up and down roller coasters. A lot of getting yelled at, a lot of going back and forth,” says new officer Fabian Emery. “It was good all around. Happy to be here.”
He wanted to join the department after having positive interactions with officers growing up in the CCSD system.
“There was, I want to say never a moment that I hadn’t seen Officer Cook, and he didn’t have a smile on his face, always handing out stickers. Taking the time to be a person and talk to you,” Emery said.
His colleague, Hunter Witcher says he also wanted to join the force after police officers showed compassion when they were called to his house often as he was growing up through no fault of his own, which is why he hopes to be assigned to an elementary school.
“In that young age, I just remember it being a positive experience every time. You know whether I was scared or not, having the police there made me feel a little better,” Witcher said. “They were empathetic. They were gentle.”
Many in the valley saw a viral video two years ago near Durango High School that didn’t appear so gentle showing a CCSD officer slamming a student to the ground.
FOX5 asked Officer Emery if that incident led to new de-escalation methods being taught to recruits.
“I would say 100%. A lot of the academy, they did take the time to really give us classes on de-escalation,” Emery said. “Not everything has to be us going straight forward into the fire and being so high up here, we can have a chance to kind of bring that down and talk to everybody. I mean we’re all human.”
School safety is important to both new officers especially after FOX5 just learned 92 kids were hit in school zones this school year. That’d down from 100 the same time last year.
The department also made hundreds of arrests and wrote thousands of citations.
But Emery says seeing an officer doesn’t always spell trouble.
”I know a lot of people think it’s a bad rap when you see us and you see the police badge and you think it’s the end of the world,“ Emery said. ”We truly are here to help you and we really want to give as many services as we can. We’re not here to take everybody to jail and or take you to juvie. That’s not what we’re here for. I want to make sure you at least go home safe.”
The new officers have another 26 weeks of field training.
FOX5 also learned it’s a competitive department to break into. There are only about four openings at the moment.
For a look at those jobs and to track future openings, check this out.
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