Now showing at the Paramount: 9 new police officers - 3 women in Class 60
It wasn't a Hollywood movie about police showing Thursday evening at the Paramount Theatre.
It was real life a drama.
The Abilene Police Department added nine officers graduating as Academy Class 60. They were joined by four newly certified telecommunicators in a ceremony that included the traditional pinning.
Last year, 12 cadets were pinned, and three officers who had served elsewhere but went through the APD's training program, joined the department in a July ceremony at the Abilene Convention Center.
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The new officers are Cameron Atkins, Chaz Busse, Sarah Church, Pablo Garza, Jonathan Hoover, Brooklyn Kanady, K'Lynn O'Shields, William Scroggin and Joshau Tauer.
The new telecommuniators, who also had to go through extensive training, are Taylor Casady, Eric Eder, Jerrell Hodges and Christopher Hotaling.
Women well presented
The cadet class includes three women and the son of Lt. Joe Tauer, who the day before celebrated 35 years as a police officer, all with the APD.
The addition of three women, which gives APD 18 in uniform, came on the second day of Women's History Month. Class 60 was "one of the highest numbers of female officers to graduate one academy," spokesman Rick Tomlin said.
"I'm excited to get started," said Church, who is a Cooper High and Hardin-Simmons University grad. "It was a long few weeks but it was a lot of fun. But my real work begins now.
"I think I speak for my whole class that we're ready to hit the streets."
Church's first day is Sunday.
"I'm ready to hit the road," she said.
The addition of the new officers brings APD closer to its authorized staffing of 216 sworn officers.
Earlier Thursday, Chief Marcus Dudley Jr. asked the Abilene City Council to consider adding more officers to serve a growing city.
Dudley added nine that night.
"I'm feeling really good, really proud and happy to be here," Kanady said, standing with family and friends under the theater marquee outside.
Now that she's in uniform, would she recommend a police career to other women?
"Absolutely," she said. "I think hardest thing for women is there is not more women doing it. When you have a presence of a woman there, it encourages other women to want to do it. They can see it can be done, it can be accomplished."
She said the three women cadets had the same mindset.
"Our interest was making it to the end and graduating," she said.
Dreams fulfilled
O'Shields, who is from Hawley, said becoming a police officer was "my lifelong dream. Since I was a little girl, I've wanted to be a police officer. I stuck with it and kept going."
She said watching the video on the big screen at the Paramount locked it in that she had accomplished her goal.
"It made me really excited. I love watching all that we went through and how much hard work we put in. "
Kanady said the firearms training was the most enjoyable of a demanding training process. The state requires 720 hours for peace officers; APD graduates log close to 1,200 hours.
"I really enjoy shooting and that's really important in law enforcement to be an accurate armsman," said Kanady, who is from Clyde.
A video recap of their training showed the cadets in combat, boxing, running and being struck by spray to the face and by a Taser.
"I've watched that video 10 times over and it reminds me of the good times we had and the hard work we put in," Church said. "It fires me up every time."
They laugh now, seeing their reactions. But it was a test at the time.
"The most difficult for me was the expectation of doing good and making everyone proud," Kanady said.
Training was not all physical. The cadets had to learn the law, and were tested on their knowledge, and how to interact with the public.
Class 60 started with 72 applicants who were whittled to 16 to start training. The number dropped to 14 on the first day and to 12 after the first of 30 weeks of training.
Nine persevered.
"We got along really well," Kanady said of the nifty nine. "Lots of military experience and other walks of life. We were able to come together as a team and work well together."
Following dad into APD
One of those with military experience was Joshua Tauer, 37, the oldest cadet. Ironically, his father was the youngest in his APD class.
Joshua Tauer served in the U.S. Army, flying Black Hawk helicopters, and remains in the National Guard.
"New opportunities and new doors," he said after hugging his grandmother and taking a photo with her. "It's an honor and privilege to still be serving our community. As many times as I was deployed and done missions stateside, I will tell that the stateside mission on the National Guard side has been the most rewarding. I know police work in our community will have the same ripple effect.
"Words can't describe it."
Tauer represents a third generation of law enforcement in his family. His grandfather, also Joe, served the Houston PD.
"I remember growing up and seeing him get into his uniform," Joshua Tauer said of his father. "Whenever he'd leave, I'd get into my little costume as a policeman and play in the front yard," he said, smiling. "That's what I wanted to be since the time I can remember.
"This is what I always dreamed of doing."
Tauer spoke on behalf of the class, his father recording his talk on his phone. He then went onto the stage with others to pin his son.
"Tonight is very special ... I kid around that I found my replacement," the elder Tauer said. "It was a long time coming."
He said his son made the decision to seek law enforcement during COVID.
"He always told me growing up, 'Hey dad, I'm going to join the police department and we're going to work together,'" Tauer said. "And here it is.
"It's a good day. He comes in with a lot of leadership experience and a lot of life experience. He was an officer in the Army. I trust that he is going to do well.
"I look forward to him getting out on the streets and being able to work with him."
Cadets were given their badges individually by Dudley and were sworn in by City Secretary Shawna Atkinson. The stoic faces they tried to present finally gave way to smiles as the audience applauded.
'Be the calm in the storm'
Guest speaker was Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Tusing, who also has a military background. Before speaking, he noted only recently was ticketed for speeding in his new truck on Buffalo Gap Road.
He challenged the cadets on three points.
Maintain your mental health, he said, and know others "have their six." That includes those who will prosecute the bad characters.
Tusing said the job, at times, likely will be more difficult than the new officers imagined, especially dealing with people
"Be the calm in the storm," he said. "It's hard."
Finally, he said, "None of us in this room are as smart as all of us. Take in as much information as possible."
That includes people with a different point of view or perspective. And the good guy may not be telling the truth and the guy with a mile-long rap sheet could be.
Now, it's time to get to work.
"I'm excited to get started," Church said. "It was a long few weeks but it was a lot of fun. But my real work begins now.
"I think I speak for my whole class that we're ready to hit the streets."
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Now showing at the Paramount: 9 new police officers - 3 women in Class 60
