Countywide : Woman Is 1st to Lead Police Academy Class

Susan Dawson made history Monday when she became the first female cadet in the county ever to be named the top student at the Sheriff’s Department Training Academy.

“Susan is truly an outstanding recruit,” said Newport Beach Police Sgt. Mike Hyams, who hired her. “She obviously represents the highest standards of both the department and law enforcement.” Dawson, 27, lives in Garden Grove.

Dawson finished the five-month program with a 91.87 average. She placed first in the women’s physical training section, and she bested all other students in the written exams, Hyams said.

Dawson is a former Marine and is now a first lieutenant with the Marine Corps Reserves. She is the wife of an Anaheim police officer and the mother of a 3-year-old boy.

Hyams noted that Dawson’s class was an unusually competitive one. He said that normally about half of the 65 members of each class do not complete the program, but that 49 members of Dawson’s class were graduated.