Sheriff invites public to take the free Sheriff’s Office Citizens Police Academy class starting Aug. 24 and featuring a firearms simulator in which you make a split-second decision on whether to use lethal force on a suspect; Call 278-7628 or 278-7799 to register

Participants in a past Citizens Police Academy class watch a video that calls on them to make a split-second decision on whether to use lethal force on a criminal suspect.

Sheriff James Pohlmann is inviting the public to see what it is like to be in the shoes of a police officer and have to make a split-second decision on a situation to determine whether to use lethal force on a criminal suspect.
St. Bernard residents can register now for the free and popular Citizens Police Academy classes starting Aug. 24, which features a firearms simulator with computerized videos of situations an officer could face.
Members of the class then make a quick decision whether to fire on a suspect – the same decision an actual officer would have to make. Sometimes the videos show an officer would need to use lethal force to save their life or someone else’s and sometimes there is no actual threat.
Call Capt. Charles Borchers at (504) 278-7628 or Dep. Sheriff Eric Eilers at (504) 278-7799 to register now for the 10-week course, which includes a graduation ceremony on Oct. 26.

“It’s interesting and makes you think,” Sheriff Pohlmann said of the firearms simulator, which is borrowed from the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office. “It gives you a feel of what could happen to an officer in an actual situation in which a split-second decision is required.” The simulator is also used for refresher training by deputies, the sheriff said.
Handguns powered by CO2 gas are used in the simulator, which many people taking the classes say is the highlight of the course because it is so realistic.
More than 700 parish residents have taken the Citizens Police Academy classes since they were started in the late 1990s. This is the 18th session of the classes.

Classes are held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday nights in the Sheriff’s Office 2nd-floor Training Center in a parish government building at 2118 Jackson Ave. in Chalmette, immediately behind the Parish Courthouse. The Assessor’s Office is in the same building.

Residents taking the class will learn numerous other things about law enforcement and have the chance to ask questions and receive frank answers from veteran officers.

“Participants will learn about what police work entails in the parish,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said.

“And this year we have added a class on crime prevention, which will touch on home security and personal safety.”

Graduates, the sheriff said, become “ambassadors for law enforcement because they have a vested interest in what happens’’ in St. Bernard.

There are numerous features to the Citizens Police Academy program which participants say they enjoy, such as:

– Hearing from sheriff’s commanders on various phases of law enforcement including patrol work, narcotics enforcement, detective duties, S.W.A.T. team demonstrations.
– Receiving boating safety tips.
– Hands-on demonstrations of equipment including weapons and a bomb robot used for checking suspicious items are also part of the program.
— Get information about the parish’s battered women’s program.
– On-site tours of Parish Prison and the Parish Courthouse.
– Lectures from law enforcement agencies from outside St. Bernard.