ADVERTISEMENT

    A Day at the Columbus Police Officer Expo

    Kim Jacobs, chief of the Columbus Division of Police, stood before a few hundred potential recruits Saturday morning and declared, “I was certain when I was growing up that I wanted to be a veterinarian.”

    ADVERTISEMENT

    This was part of Jacobs’ introduction to CPD’s June 14 Officer Expo, a chance for everyone and anyone to get a taste of what the application and academy process is like for police recruits. The expo and another just like it in July are intended to attract applicants from all walks of life, including people who, like Jacobs, never before considered a career in law enforcement.

    As Jacobs and Director of Public Safety Mitchell Brown speak, I sit in the auditorium at the Chief James G. Jackson Columbus Police Training Academy surrounded by the kind of diversity that Jacobs says will make CPD stronger, wiser and more receptive to the community. The expo participants are of many different races. Many of them are women. Some are older, some are younger. A few wear military uniforms.

    After the speeches, we are all divided into smaller groups and led through seven sessions describing the benefits, training and expectations of being a Columbus police officer.

    The first session my group is taken to explains the background investigation that each applicant is subjected to before they can be admitted to the academy. While a myriad of infractions or incidents in one’s personal history can be disqualifying, according to Officer John Witherspoon, “The quickest way to get removed from the process is to try and conceal something.”

    The background investigation process is long and drawn-out, but as the expo participants are frequently reminded, it’s what the citizens deserve.

    “It is not easy,” Director Brown told us in his opening speech. “It shouldn’t be easy.”

    Along with the background standards there is discussion of the job benefits. Officers are paid $23.61 an hour during their first year, including during their time in the academy. Officers receive health insurance after their first month, dental and vision insurance come after 90 days and after a year officers can receive full tuition reimbursement.

    The next session for my group is firearms training, led by Sgt. Doug Follmer and Officer Charles Sutherland. They explain the extensive training required on two key weapons used by CPD: the Smith and Wesson model M&P .40 caliber sidearm and the Remington 870 shotgun. CPD recruits train for 16 days on both state and city required courses of fire and end up firing about 4,000 rounds in that time.

    police-academy-03

    Follmer and Sutherland warn us that vision and mental control are vital to firearms training and that the concussive force of a firing range can be fatiguing. Sutherland points out that everyone at the expo has been given a stress ball, as quickly loading and reloading magazines requires significant hand strength.

    “If you’re serious about a career in law enforcement,” says Sutherland, “start improving your hand strength.”

    Next is a session on the stress test all recruits must pass, led by Mark Myhal, an instructor at Ohio State University. Myhal’s VO2 max testing measures the maximum capacity of the body to transport and use oxygen during exercise. Myhal warns that this part of the recruitment process is extremely challenging and shouldn’t be taken lightly. He insists that the test is “more accurate than the polygraph.”

    At the next session, called “Touch a Cruiser,” CPD officers display commonly used police equipment including helmets, body armor, riot gear, vehicles and bicycles. The officers here give honest and thoughtful answers to the participants’ questions, though some of them poke fun at this particular session’s name; “Are you guys really that excited to ‘touch a cruiser?’”

    At the test preparation section, representatives from the city’s Civil Service Commission walk us through the officer exams and evaluations. They tell us Columbus police officers are expected to have excellent cognitive, writing and interpersonal skills. At the physical fitness session, officers describe the minimum fitness test that recruits must pass and expo participants get the chance to run through an obstacle course. Similarly, at the defensive tactics preview participants have the chance to try out basic boxing moves, throwing jabs, uppercuts, knees and elbows.

    police-academy-02

    I feel somewhat awkward not participating in all of this. Instead I’m darting back and forth, taking notes and photographs. It’s not as if they can tell I’m from the media and not actually a police applicant, though.

    “Who do you write for?”

    Okay, so Director Brown can tell. He asks me from if the sessions have converted me to a life of law enforcement. I tell him not quite, but that I’m impressed by what I’ve seen.

    At the end of the day, all of the participants are gathered back into the auditorium where we started and given some serious bits of information. The organizers show a brief video about police-involved shootings and describe some of the dangers that Columbus police officers face every day. It’s because of that danger that the training is designed so that only the best make it to the end. “We don’t just hand out badges and guns,” we are told.

    The risks and rigor of joining CPD don’t seem to have deterred Kody Phelps when I speak to him in the parking lot after the expo finishes. Phelps, who came from Dayton to attend the event, has wanted to be a police officer for a number of years and a family friend, also a cop, recommended CPD as having great benefits and even better officers.

    “I loved it,” says Phelps of the expo. “I learned a lot, it was very helpful. It definitely makes me more excited to apply here soon.”

    To register for the July 17th event, CLICK HERE.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Subscribe

    More to Explore:

    The Confluence Cast: Grave Matters – Unearthing the North Graveyard

    There is often a complex interplay between preservation and progress. A year into his exploration, Columbus Underground reporter Jesse Bethea continues to sift through the story of how the removal of remains from what was once the North Market parking lot unfolded. From the contentious removal of centuries-old graves to the forensic analysis of unearthed remains, today’s episode navigates the ethical, legal, and emotional complexities surrounding the issue.  In the quest to honor the past while embracing the future, we examine what lies beneath the surface of urban development and confront the ghosts of history that still shape our city today.

    Kayaking Columbus: Treat Cold Water With Respect

    Welcome to Kayaking Columbus, a recurring column by CU freelance...

    Green Columbus, American Forests Release Tree Equity Tool

    By any metric, the tree cover over Columbus is...

    Kayaking Columbus: A Prairie Oaks Companion

    Welcome to Kayaking Columbus, a recurring column by CU...

    City Passes Stronger Tree Protections

    Columbus City Council voted unanimously on December 11 to...
    Jesse Bethea
    Jesse Betheahttps://columbusunderground.com
    Jesse Bethea is a freelance features writer at Columbus Underground covering neighborhood issues, economics, science, technology and other topics. He is a graduate from Ohio University, a native of Fairfax, Virginia and a fan of movies, politics and baseball. Jesse is the winner of The Great Novel Contest and the author of Fellow Travellers, available now at all major retailers.
    ADVERTISEMENT