Shreveport Police Department Corporal Peter Pollitt talks with 101.7 / 710 KEEL's Robert J Wright and Erin McCarty about the upcoming SPD academy scheduled for mid-September and how the cash shortfall facing the city won't affect recruiting.

Pollitt tells KEEL listeners that despite the city's funding shortage, estimated to be as much as $25 million between now and the end of the year, the academy is "for sure."

"We need the folks," he says, referring to the department's manpower shortages, adding that the class scheduled for this fall was previously postponed due to COVID 19 concerns. "There are at least ten or eleven cadets who have been accepted by the SPD and are ready to begin their training."

Pollitt also emphasizes that when it comes to applicants, "we're looking for as many as we can get," pointing out that applicants, "Must be twenty one years old, have good moral character, have a high school diploma or GED and a birth certificate."

And Pollitt then explains how he - and the Department - are willing to go the extra mile to help potential recruits get started. "The first step is to fill out an application. You can get that at 7300 Mansfield Road at the Civil Service Office or the police station, he says. "But to make it easier I'll give out my cell phone number and I'll deliver an application in person to any interested candidate."

For potential candidates, Corporal Pollitt can be reached at 318 230 - 3501.

The SPD recruiter says the SPD academy is eighteen weeks long. "We're looking for as many people as we can and we'll process them as fast as we can."

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