Rutherford/Murfreesboro: 15 County Deputies Earn Badges

 

Photo: Deputies who earned badges after nine weeks of initial training are, from left, front row, are SRO Emily Leonard, Deputy Tracy Sheppard, Deputy Natalie Woodward, SRO Glen Smith, SRO Jason Thomas and Deputy Alfredo Garcia; second row, Deputy William Rodriquez and Deputy Dylan Ayala; back row, Deputy Greg Rubo, Deputy Raymond Maurier, SRO Caleb Shadwick, Deputy Anton Jett, Deputy James MacDavid, Deputy Stephen DeMeo and Deputy Sam Slaughter.

Sheriff’s deputies who completed the first nine weeks of 35 weeks of training were welcomed into the family by Administrative Capt. Angela Istvanditsch and Training Sgt. Sean Vinson.

Istvanditsch and Vinson presented badges to SRO Emily Leonard, SRO Glen Smith, SRO Jason Thomas and SRO Caleb Shadwick, and Deputy Tracy Sheppard, Deputy Natalie Woodward, Deputy Alfredo Garcia, Deputy William Rodriquez, Deputy Dylan Ayala, Deputy Greg Rubo, Deputy Raymond Maurier, Deputy Anton Jett, Deputy James MacDavid, Deputy Stephen DeMeo and Deputy Sam Slaughter.

Families and friends attended the ceremony.

“Our overreaching goal is to make sure our deputies go home the way they came to work,” Vinson said, explaining the extensive training. “We have a grueling training process.”

During the initial training, deputies learned:

• Handling the duty pistol and rifle.

• Suffering exposure to chemical spray.

• Making arrests and testifying in court.

• Identifying impaired drivers.

• Practicing defensive tactics.

• Working as a team to clear buildings.

• Participating in scenarios of domestic assaults, unwanted guests and behavioral problems.

• Writing reports and being grilled by defense attorneys.

They now begin 14 weeks of field training to handle calls with a Field Training Officer.

The deputies will spend 12 weeks at the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy where they will become state-certified officers. They will complete two more weeks of training before operating on their own.

SROs, who are already state-certified, will transfer to their division for additional training.

Istvanditsch addressed the families.

“They’re going to need your support,” Istvanditsch said.

They will need time to talk, be along and decompress because of work they experience.

She spoke to the deputies.

 “It takes a lot of guts to get into this field,” Istvanditsch said. “As officers, always do the right thing, even when somebody is not watching.”