Diversity encouraged in Citizen’s Police Academy

Lt. Scott Bailey hopes for a variety of ages, races

by Melanie Jongsma

LANSING, Ill. (November 29, 2017) – Since the early 2000s, the Lansing Police Department has offered a Citizen’s Police Academy for Lansing residents. Lt. Scott Bailey is organizing the program this year, with help from Sgt. Gabe Barajas. Bailey hopes the Citizen’s Police Academy will enhance relationships between Lansing police and the general Lansing community. “It’s the police and the citizens together who make up a community,” he said. “We want to educate the community about how we serve them.” Bailey hopes that the series of classes and the variety of information will help dispel misinformation. “If there’s fear, we want to take that away.”

Bailey acknowledges that past academies have consisted mainly of older citizens, and he is hoping the upcoming class will be more diverse. Having more of Lansing represented will make the interactions more meaningful, particularly during the planned discussion of “Social Media and Law Enforcement.”

Other scheduled topics include Police Ethics, Crime Scene Processing, Criminal Law and Procedure, Use of Force, Drug Use, and Canine Demonstrations. Lt. Bailey will do some of the teaching, but he will also bring in guest experts on many of the topics.

The academy is open only to Lansing residents, though enrollment may be extended outside of Lansing if room in the class is available.

The classes are free, and a background check is done on all enrollees.

The upcoming Lansing Citizen’s Police Academy will run on Wednesdays, January 17–March 14, from 7:00–9:30pm. The classroom can accommodate about 30 students. The Lansing Police Department likes to have at least 15 enrolled in order to invest staff time in the program.

Classes are held at the Lansing Police Department, 2710 170th Street in Lansing. Contact Lt. Scott Bailey for more information or to enroll:

• Call 708-895-7130
• Email [email protected]
• Download the application (PDF)