Southeast : A Police Academy for Concerned Citizens

Want to be a police recruit but you’re a bit rusty on criminal law? Want to back up Long Beach’s finest but you can’t manage even 10 push-ups? There’s hope yet.

Long Beach police hope to sign up 35 people to attend their first community police academy. With classes scheduled to begin Feb. 1., officers have already gathered more than a dozen recruits, said Sgt. Michele Miller.

Department officials have laid out a regimen with strict attendance requirements for the 15-week program aimed at making the recruits more familiar with law enforcement, including the basics of criminal law, search and seizure and arrest procedure.

The program is not designed to lead participants toward a career in the field, but organizers say they hope its graduates will volunteer for Neighborhood Watch organizations and the department’s various advisory commissions.

Taught by officers within the department, the classes will be offered for free. Applicants must be over 21 and either live or work in the city. Miller said the program may become a regular activity if it is successful.