At City Hall on Friday, the 140th Cleveland Police Academy graduated 49 new officers and one fire investigator. Council Safety Director Michael McGrath, Chief of Police Calvin D. Williams and Mayor Frank G. Jackson administered the oath to the academy graduates who are set to be assigned to patrol the neighborhood districts.
Each of the recruits were selected following a Civil Service exam administered in 2017 for the patrol officer position, and then underwent a series of tests, comprehensive background checks, receiving more than 1,100 hours of instruction in police tactics, criminal law, community diversity and crisis intervention.
Thanks to budget enhancements, the city's Division of Police is anticipating hiring 150 total new police officers in 2018 and an additional 100 officers in the first quarter of 2019.
This quarter's graduating class comes with a bit of controversy, given that nine of the recruits are actively suing the city following cheating allegations.
Fifteen cadets are under investigation, but not all of them are part of the lawsuit. According to the lawsuit, "a disproportionate number" of recruits under investigation are black, women "or are otherwise a member of a protected class."
At the ceremony, Chief of Police Williams said, "These men and women have worked very hard to get to this day, and I want to welcome them to the Division of Police. I’d also like to remind the public that we are actively recruiting and actively hiring more officers."
For more information on the qualifications required and processes to become a police officer, click here.
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