With two fellow students providing backup cover from another vehicle, Bird brings the situation under control. In a matter of minutes, the suspect is apprehended, handcuffed and placed in a patrol vehicle for transport to a holding area. The mock felony traffic stop, held near the station's softball fields, is complete, and the 20 students enrolled in Phase I of the eight-week training course are one step closer to graduation. The police academy, headquartered in the west wing of building 57, and operating as part of the training division within the security department, was the first of its kind when established by the Navy more than 20 years ago. A comprehensive law-enforcement curriculum is in place to ensure students attending the academy are thoroughly trained.
Instructors combine practical law-enforcement techniques with classroom lectures.
The classroom lessons range from standards of conduct and crisis intervention to rape awareness and basic biology. There's so much more than just guns, handcuffs and batons. A thorough understanding of military, state and federal law is critical. Nearly 90 percent of the course work involves academic studies. Students take weekly exams to make sure they are retaining the vast amount of material they cover.