Training Ends, Service Begins for New Officers

More than 1,100 applicants wanted the job. After six months of grueling tests, background checks and intense physical training, only 46 got it.

At a graduation ceremony Friday, the cadets in Ventura County’s police academy in Camarillo became law enforcement officers.

The ceremony--held at the Port Hueneme Seabee base--marked the end of a 23-week training session and the start of what is expected to be challenging careers.

“I’m excited about hitting the streets,” said Ventura resident Sandra Brown, who became a Santa Barbara sheriff’s deputy upon graduation.

One of only three women in the graduating class, the former paramedic stressed that her gender played no role in getting through the academy.

“We all worked very hard to achieve what we did,” she said. “We all were treated equally.”

One of her classmates, Ventura County Sheriff’s Deputy Kari Wetter, agreed.

“It’s very challenging,” she said. “But it’s nothing that can’t be done if you’re determined.”

Oxnard resident Colin Spence exemplifies that determination. Of nine awards presented during the ceremony, the Ventura police officer received three, including the Outstanding Cadet Award.

“Officer Spence has a lot to be proud of today,” Sheriff’s Department Capt. Marty Rouse said.

Sheriff Larry Carpenter said all the graduates should be proud.

“We know that we’ve got the best people the community has to offer,” he told the cadets at the ceremony, attended by hundreds of family members and friends.

Carpenter cited the rigorous selection process as evidence of the graduates’ solid preparation.

The application process begins with a general intelligence test. A physical agility test, which includes scaling a 6-foot wall, follows.

That one alone eliminates many of the applicants.

Those who pass the physical test then undergo medical, psychological and polygraph exams. A detailed background check is the next step.

And if they get through all that, they are eligible to be hired by law enforcement agencies. Only then can they begin their academy training.

This year, 19 cadets began this final step but could not complete it.

Thirty years ago, Chief Deputy Don Lanquist went through a similar process. Now he is retiring. In his address to the graduating class, he offered some advice.

“Never stop learning,” he said. “Continue your education. And always keep uppermost in your mind the public you chose to serve.”