Bethany Beach Police Trains Seasonal Officers
DELAWARE – Books, Batons, and Bethany Beach. It’s National Police Week and the Bethany Beach Police Department kicked off its seasonal officer training as they gear up for the summer…
something Corporal Andrews Rogers knows all too well.
The training was held at Camp Barnes in Frankford, DE. Chief Foley and others are excited for this time of year, as they get a chance to interact with new initiates. “I think this program is a very integral part in starting your law enforcement career,” says Corporal Rogers. “I was hired as a seasonal police officer for the town of Bethany Beach in 2012, as a senior at 18 years old, from the Indian Rivier High School spent 5 years as a seasonal and spent 8 years as a full-time.”
Deputy Chief Justin Norman is confident that this training will equip seasonal officers to be experts and eventually reach full-time status. “The seasonal recruit academy consists of over 200 hours covering a multitude of topics… Currently, they are working on their application of the ASP baton, which consist of different weapon strikes and clearance strikes. It’s important that they do the work on the bag so they know the proper technique of that weapon and how to use it properly.”
Many of the seasonal officers who help over the summer come back again and again, like seasonal Officer Perez. “I just advise them to have fun, take the experience as much as you can, because they’ll use it later in life.” Ultimately, the Bethany Beach Police Department is ensuring their officers are well-trained and ready for whatever comes next. “I think it’s good to work hard, stay consistent, and always serve with integrity, and that will help you in your law enforcement career.”
While the department doesn’t anticipate any serious problems, Chief Patrick Foley says they do take into consideration the large crowds that will be visiting the town over the next few months. “In the summertime, we bump up to 20, 25000, potentially 30 on any given weekend, so its important to have our seasonal police force out in the public. We have an influx of visitors in town, we obviously need to bump up police department numbers as well too…” Chief Foley says they usually are on duty from June until September, and many go on to become full- time officers.
