The Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission is adding classes and reopening a satellite facility in an effort to reduce its backlog of new police officers seeking basic training, which has a number of law enforcement agencies waiting months to get in.
The WSCJTC only operates one police training academy in Washington for the 285 law enforcement agencies it serves. At one point, during the recession, the academy found itself reducing the number of basic training classes it offered, said David Bales, commander for the academy in Burien.
When the economic recovery began, agencies holding off on filling vacancies or adding staff began hiring again, Bales said. At the same time, the number of retiring officers began to spike. Thirty percent of officers in the state started working between 1979 and 1984.
“When you put those two things together, the demand for basic training at the Criminal Justice Training Commission has spiked in the last year and a half,” Bales said.
Classes grew from nine in 2013 to 14 this year, with plans for another increase to 20 next year. Basic training takes up to five months to complete, which means overlapping basic training classes.
“That really almost exceeds my capacity in Burien for training,” Bales said.
Adding more basic training classes this year hasn’t made a substantial difference in the wait time, dropping from six months several months ago to about five months now. The goal is to reduce that time back to 1-2 months. If an agency were to request officer training today, Bales said they wouldn’t be able to get in until March, at the earliest.
Capt. Jim Hershey told the Meybenbauer Bay Neighbors Association on Oct. 16 the department is waiting on 15 new officers to complete academy training, but there are not enough spots available. Police Ofc. Seth Tyler reports the BPD is allowed three spots per academy.
The WSCJTC will reopen its satellite academy at the Spokane Police Department’s training center, with its first class starting Jan. 6. Trainers for the satellite facility completed their own training on Oct. 17.
“It’s something we have done periodically over the years,” Bales said of reopening the satellite facility, “but every time we do it we have to select a new staff and train them up and make sure we can replicate the program correctly.”
With so many law enforcement officers now retiring, Bales said the academy has also increased its focus on public service and guardianship due to many agencies lacking older officers to provide mentorship.
Next year’s increase in classes are dependent on approval of a supplemental budget to be included with the WSCJTC’s 2015-17 biennium budget.
“We have told the governor’s office we have to go forward with these additional classes,” Bales said.
