BROKEN ARROW, Okla — Thursday night, Broken Arrow PD added ten officers to their agency. There was a time not long ago when the BAPD was understaffed, now with this latest crop of cadets, they say they are overstaffed.
Ten cadets and their families gathered in the Broken Arrow Performing Arts Center. Toward the end a family member pinned a new badge on each cadet.
Safe to say, the Broken Arrow PD puts a value on family.
"They look at the department as a place that they can work and grow, and they look at the town as the place where they want to raise kids. They want to have their families here," Chief Brandon Berryhill said.
Chief Berryhill's newest officer Nicholas Arroyo would say the same.
"This is the home where me and my wife have settled down. I have a baby girl here, and this is going to be the community we raise her in and hopefully future kids," Arroyo said.
The cadets went through six months of training, which started with tasks as simple as mopping the floor and ended with active shooter training.
Somewhere in the middle the cadets all had to feel the shock of the taser gun.
I asked Arroyo what he considers the reward for that kind of sacrifice.
"For me, it's never wondering if you made a difference in life, you know every single day that you go out there that you're changing someone's day and you have the opportunity to save a life, change a life," Arroyo said.
Chief Berryhill put an emphasis on families within the department but he also gave props to those outside the department.
"I will tell you, the community that supports the department that protects them, gets the department they deserve," Arroyo said.
Spots for the next police academy are already filled up but the next one in line, the one after that, the process will begin in 2024 for those cadets.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- SUBSCRIBE on YouTube
