For 10 Tuesdays, spanning from September into November, the LaGrange Police Department is holding weekly meetings from 6-8 p.m. as part of the department’s Citizen’s Police Academy. The class, which is open to members of the community who wish to take part, is put on to introduce citizens of LaGrange to the world of policing, and allow citizens to better understand the job local officers are tasked with.

The class, led by Lt. Eric Lohr and Community Outreach Officer Jim Davison, is focusing on all aspects of policing. Expert, local speakers are speaking during different weeks, highlighting the different divisions of the police department, and the responsibilities associated with those departments.

Discussions on constitutional policing, civilian responses to active shooters, gang awareness and drug investigations, traffic law, interacting with police and use of force training are taking place over the 10-week course, in addition to shoot/don’t shoot training, K-9 training, and a 911 tour.

“We’re trying to show [people the] other things that we do,” Officer Davison said during the first meeting.

The LaGrange Police Department is not required to hold such an event. The department is under no certain obligation to put this on for the citizens of LaGrange, but yet they do so anyway. The LPD shows, time and time again, that they are committed and dedicated to providing the community with openness and transparency. The Citizen’s Police Academy is simply another validation to this point.

We are fortunate to live in a town and county with such honest and transparent law enforcement. The LPD, the Troup County Sheriff’s Office and the West Point and Hogansville Police Departments are top notch organizations, recognized on the state level for the work they do.

In a political and social climate that is ever changing, with statewide and national discussions incessantly taking up our time and attention, we should all be thankful to reside in a community where the law enforcement agencies make it such an obvious priority to reach out into the communities they police in a positive way.

This decision and commitment to the community starts with the leadership of these organizations, and men like Police Chief Lou Dekmar and Sheriff James Woodruff are to be thanked for the emphasis they have placed here.

To them and the rest of the law enforcement in this city and county, thank you for the efforts you make, to go above and beyond to impact this community.