PUBLIC RELATIONS UNIT

July 7, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact Information: PolicePRUnit@slcgov.com

SLCPD Graduates 21 New Officers from SLCPD Police Academy

SALT LAKE CITY — Today, the Salt Lake City Police Department added 21 new police officers to its ranks.

Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown said, “This graduation comes with a lot of emotions. We’ve all seen the devastating headlines across the country about mass shootings and police officers being hurt and killed. But we’ve also seen the remarkable bravery of officers who have run into chaos, inside grocery stores, inside schools and at parades to protect their communities.”

As outlined in the SLCPD Revised Crime Control Plan, filling all sworn positions is a top priority for the department.

For nearly seven months, the SLCPD Training Division provided the recruit officers with training around legal, reality-based (scenario), defensive tactics, firearms, crisis intervention, and emergency vehicle operations.

The officers now enter the next phase of their training process, known as field training. During this time, the officers are partnered with a Field Training Officer (FTO) and are evaluated on how they perform day-to-day functions of a patrol officer.

Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown added, “As future officers, these 21 recruits are entering a profession that remains in a state of change. Police departments across the country are strained. In many regards, this is nothing new. This profession has weathered many difficult times before. But today is different. We are overcoming the challenges we face with more resources, technology and training than we have ever had before. That knowledge and skill translates itself into stronger and safer communities throughout Salt Lake City.”

The Salt Lake City Police Academy is a satellite academy that meets the guidelines and criteria set by the Utah Police Officer Standards and Training (POST).

As of July 5, 2022, the SLCPD is down 39 sworn positions from its authorized staffing level set by city council.

On May 16, 2022, the SLCPD welcomed 24 recruits who are a part of Class 158. They are anticipated to graduate in October.

Four photos from today’s graduation ceremony are included with this press release.

Anyone interested in applying to be a police officer with the SLCPD should visit:  https://slcpd.com/joinourteam/.

In November 2021, SLCPD Chief Mike Brown and Mayor Erin Mendenhall released an  update to the 2021 Crime Control Plan to lower crime, improve response times, fill authorized staffing levels for sworn positions and to continue building community relationships.

The strategies outlined in the Revised Crime Control Plan include expanding recruitment and hiring efforts, developing a violent criminal apprehension team, implementing the Police Civilian Response Team, expanding the department’s call diversion program and its online reporting capabilities.

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