Copperas Cove Police Department opens registration for Citizens Police Academy

Special to the Leader-Press

The 36th session of the Copperas Cove Police Department Citizens Police Academy will commence on Thursday, February 9th, 2023. The classes will meet at the Copperas Cove Police Department from 6:30 pm until 9:30 pm. 

The Copperas Cove Police Department Citizens Police Academy is designed to give interested members of the community insight into the day-to-day operations of their local law enforcement.

For most law-abiding citizens, the only contact they have with the Police is when they are unfortunately stopped for a traffic violation. These relatively few contacts leave individuals with a limited view of what their local law enforcement agency is really doing other than enforcing traffic laws and responding to situations that have already occurred.

The Citizens Police Academy provides an arena for open dialogue and exposure to things that you care about most; the safety of all members of our community. During this ten-week course, participants are not only instructed in different disciplines within the agency, but are also given the opportunity to actually handle situations that law enforcement handles every day.

These situations are staged for the benefit of the participant and it is through these mock scenes that they get exposure to what it is actually like to be “on the other side of the fence” as the officer responding in the scenario.

“We understand that a ten-week course can sound a little overwhelming, but it need not be. The course is designed to meet once a week for approximately three hours and you are allowed to miss up to three classes during that time period and still graduate at the end of the session,” stated Lt. Krystal Baker with the Copperas Cove Police Department in a news release.

“The goals of this academy are simple; first to provide a venue between the police and the citizens we serve and second (and most important) to enjoy yourself. Does this sound like something you would be interested in? If it does, we’d like to have you attend the next session!”

Please contact Lieutenant Krystal Baker at 254-547-8222 ext. 6956 or kbaker@copperascovetx.gov for further information. Applications are on the city’s website www.copperascovetx.gov/files/forms/police/cpa_app.pdf and the deadline to submit them is January 30th, 2023. The class will be limited to 15 participants.