HENDERSON (FOX5) — Two Henderson police recruits are weeks away from finishing the police academy after 18 weeks of training that has grown more intense since they started.
Anthony Rosas and Tiffany Harris were first introduced hours into becoming Henderson police recruits. Months later, the instructions they receive are more complex, and the margin for error in training has narrowed.
Recruits train for high-risk traffic stops
Rosas and Harris are working through high-risk traffic stop scenarios, used when officers may be dealing with a stolen vehicle or someone suspected of a violent crime.
“But the more you do it, the more comfortable you get speaking to people, the more comfortable you get with your officer presence, the more comfortable you get with pulling people out,” Rosas said.
During the scenarios, recruits ask drivers whether anyone else is in the vehicle, whether there are kids, pets or weapons present.
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The recruits must watch the person in front of them, listen to their partners, remember their training, and make decisions while the scenario is still moving.
“You want to start with basic level of compliance. Henderson police don’t move. And you’ll gauge the subject’s compliance there. Are they still moving around, making movements in the car, trying to hide things, hide from you?” Harris said.
Building confidence
When first interviewed, the recruits said confidence was something they wanted to build. Now 18 weeks into the 26-week academy, they say that is changing.
“I feel like mentally, you know, the mind’s a little sharper, because now we’re taught to articulate everything, be curious, and really see, you know, what you got,” one recruit said.
“As someone like maybe a woman, smaller stature, you may think, oh my God, that guy’s so big. How am I going to get him, you know, restrained? How am I going to tactically do this? But really, it’s your mindset. And a lot of it is communication,” the recruit said.
Class size and department vacancy rate
Of the 56 Henderson Police Department recruits who started the academy, 38 remain in the class. Henderson police said their vacancy rate was 14% two years ago. Today it stands closer to zero.
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