Centralia has four new police officers ready to begin their police academy training.
Christopher Jansen of Clinton County, Michael Dodson of Salem, and Nolen Beggs and Bret Winegarner of Centralia were all sworn into office during a ceremony at the Centralia City Council chambers on Monday.
Dodson says they will report to training at the Police Academy in Belleville on Wednesday where they will be for 14 weeks. They will then complete 12 weeks of field training with other members of the department before working as an officer on their own.
“This is a very proud moment for them. It is a great moment for the department to have these new people joining us who we desperately need. We’ve had these open positions for quite a while that we have been trying to fill. This is one of those milestone moments. Getting sworn in as a law enforcement officer is not just ‘you have a job’, you have begun a profession and career. It is a life-changing moment not just for these officers, but also for their families.”
With the four new officers, Centralia Police still have two openings to fill.
