Chief Tim Lentz is proud to announce the graduation of 7 recruits from police academy on the morning of January 22nd, 2015. In keeping with his promise to fill the ranks of the Covington Police Department from an all-time low staffing level, these new recruits will go directly to the patrol division to complete their field training and become solo police officers protecting the citizens of Covington. Filling vacant police officer positions is not a quick process and the graduation of these officers is a major step toward completing that goal. New officers must undergo a rigorous background check, physical and mental fitness tests, complete a police academy and pass a field-training program before they can be released to work as solo officers.
The 7 police officers that graduated attended the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office P.O.S.T. (Peace Officer Standards and Training) Level I Academy, which began in October of last year.
They began their 16 week field training program last Friday, working with certified training officers in the patrol division to get hands-on experience. Upon completion of the field-training program, they will be assigned to positions in the patrol division.
The CPD has two additional recruits in the Slidell Police Academy, leaving only one more open position within the police department. Chief Lentz made the following statement, “We are proud of these officers for graduating the academy and excelling while doing so. This will bring us another step closer to our goal of a fully staffed police department. I would also like to thank Sheriff Strain for allowing these officers to attend his POST Academy.”
