Police Reaching Out Through Citizen Class

Arguably no other occupation has populated mass media as much as law enforcement. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was among the first to use the backdrop successfully, introducing detective Sherlock Holmes to the world in 1887, after which the bequeathing quickly began.

Today, there is no shortage of bestselling detective fiction or popular cop shows and movies, and if a writer’s imagination doesn’t catch your fancy, there’s always COPS. But given such saturation, how much does anyone really know about the rigors of law enforcement and the roles of police officers, particularly those working within our community?

That is a mystery the hopes to shed more light on when it conducts its annual Citizen Police Academy Class from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, March 7 through May 9, at the department, 10911 Main St.

“This is strictly for the community to come in and get a general idea about exactly what your police department does around you and for you on a day-to-day basis,” said Huntley police Sgt. L.J. Marak, a 10-year department veteran who will be overseeing this year’s academy after participating in the previous five.

But, while the program is intended to be a broad overview, Marak pointed out it’s also important for him and his fellow officers to address specifics.

“Instead of just showing them what we do, it’s also (about) why we do what we do,” he said. “And that’s what we’re trying to show people. There’s reasoning behind some of the discretion that we have and the ways we have to go about things.

"Plus it gives the people in town better knowledge of the men and women who work here. They see us on a more personal level, rather than an all-business type of thing, because (in the class) everyone looks, for lack of a better term, normal," he said. "They just don’t see a uniform, and we just don’t see someone we’re dealing with on the street. Everyone gets to know one another.”

Marak warned, though, that participants should not necessarily view the program as official community watch instruction and certainly not certified police training.

“At no point will people leave here as certified officers or police cadets,” he said. “They won’t be certified by the state. They can’t go out and enforce laws.”

But given some of the situations that police officers routinely face, why would you want to? That is the idea behind several of the program’s role-playing exercises, one of which is the clearing of a building.

“There will also be traffic-stop scenarios, where participants actually get to make traffic stops in the back lot (of the police department) in a controlled environment and deal with (police officers) who are driving the car,” Marak said. “People really seem to enjoy the traffic stop portion because they get to be the ones who walk up on the car with the flashlight. It’s eye-opening for them, and I think that’s what they enjoy the most because there is a certain level of fear. They get worked up over it. But we’re inducing that so they can get an idea what it’s like for police officers to approach cars on a daily basis.”

New to the program will be a session on bullying, adding to the already teeming agenda.

“It seems like a lot of time, 200 hours of class time, but with the amount of information that we want to provide people, it’s hard to cram it all in and still get people involved,” said Marak. He said that that among the topics to be discussed are: crime scene investigation, criminal laws, local ordinances, geographic-based policing, patrol operations, juvenile laws, domestic violence, DUI laws, crime prevention and police training.

The free, 10-week class is open to individuals who are 18 years old and live or work in Huntley. Participants also must pass a background check and register in advance, as space is limited.

“Because we sometimes have more demand than class size, we impose an 80 percent attendance requirement,” Marak said. Participants “have to attend eight out of 10 classes. We’d rather have people who are going to be able to make it.”

Class graduates are eligible to join the Huntley Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association.

The registration deadline is Wednesday, Feb. 29. For more information, visit the department's website.