Gov. Andy Beshear and the Kentucky State Police announced that sixty-five new cadets reported to Frankfort on Sunday to begin their twenty-four weeks of intense training to one day serve and protect the Commonwealth of Kentucky as troopers. The new recruits include 57 traditional and 8 LEAP (law enforcement accelerated program) cadets.
“My administration’s top priority is to protect our Kentucky families and communities, which is why we must boldly invest in our law enforcement,” said Gov. Beshear. “On behalf of the commonwealth, thank you to these 65 men and women who have chosen to wear the badge of honor to create a better safer Kentucky for all.”
KSP Commissioner Phillip Burnett, Jr. said the next twenty-four weeks will be focused on training that promotes public safety through service, integrity and professionalism using partnerships to prevent, reduce and deter crime and the fear of crime, enhance highway safety through education and enforcement, and safeguard property and protect individual rights. “You will be challenged both mentally and physically, but throughout it all you will prepare for something greater – the selfless act of service to the commonwealth. Being a trooper is a difficult undertaking, many times perilous, and at all times demanding. It is not a job; it is a way of life.”
Traditional cadet classes include twenty-four weeks of basic training with more than 1,000 hours of classroom and field study in subjects such as constitutional law, juvenile and traffic law, use of force, weapons training, first aid, high speed vehicle pursuit, criminal investigation, computer literacy, hostage negotiations, evidence collection, radio procedures, search and seizure, crash investigation, drug identification, crowd control, armed robbery response, land navigation, electronic crimes, sex crimes, hate crimes, domestic violence, bomb threats, hazardous materials, implicit bias, race relations and social intelligence. LEAP class candidates attend the academy with at minimum two years of law enforcement experience and undergo an accelerated thirteen-week academy.
